Bookends
by FreakyFreak17
Summary: Perfect Puzzle Piece [revised edition]. Fed up with Wally's abrasive approach to their friendship, Kuki decides to explore other options. Will it make sense for her to look anywhere else? Is there such a thing as a perfect guy for her? Or has the boy who always stood opposite her been the right guy all along?
1. A So-Called Friendship

**_Author's Note: _****_Here's what happened: out of boredom, I re-read The Perfect Puzzle Piece recently, realized that I still loved it, and decided to try updating it. However, I found that a lot of the content was outdated (*cringe*) and that my writing style has much changed, so a simple rewrite wasn't going to work. That said, consider this a updated/rewritten version of The Perfect Puzzle Piece. Hope you enjoy!_**

**_P.S. I'm REALLY hoping that FF doesn't flip and take this down, but no promises...  
_**

* * *

The Cheezaria was poppin'. No, not just poppin' - _jalapeno cheddar CHEESE _poppin'. It was the first day of summer, and the youth of Gallagher Heights did not waste any time to congregate at the most popular food joint in town. Waiters darted in every direction carrying trays of cheesy goodness from table to table - cheese pizzas, cheese burgers, cheese fries, cheese sandwiches, cheesecake - you name it. And with every minute that went by, another hoard of teenagers poured in through the double doors, eager to claim another table.

Fortunately for Kuki and her best friend Abby, they had already managed to claim a spot. It was a round, spacious booth at the corner of the restaurant, and the only thing left to do now was wait for the rest of the gang to arrive.

"And that's why The Rainbow Monkey Show is as relevant today as it was when we were ten!" Kuki said triumphantly as she slammed her delicate fist against the table, almost as if she were literally punctuating her point. She then stared at Abby with her wide, bright eyes, eagerly waiting for an enthusiastic reception. Instead she was met with a blank stare masking a repressed laugh. "You weren't listening, were you?" She accused.

"I was!" Abby broke into laughter.

"Stop lying!"

"No, really, I was!" Abby waived her hands in apology as she giggled. "It's just that... Dude. It's _Rainbow Monkeys_. You know I'm not a fan."

"I know, I know..." Kuki said, feigning sadness. "I still love you for pretending to care though."

"What can I say? I'm a good friend."

"Yes, you are."

They both grabbed their sodas and toasted in honor of their friendship, and they were just about to take a sip when a tall-glass-of-water of a human being showed up at their table.

"Nigel!" Kuki exclaimed when she recognized another one of her best friends.

"Sorry I'm late," Nigel said as he slid into the booth with all the grace of a posh forty-year-old man stuck in a seventeen-year-old's body.

"Glad you made it, Nige," Abby said to him, "Kuki was just telling me about the timeless relevance of Rainbow Monkeys."

"Ah yes, I remember her telling me about this. Something about how Pretty-In-Punk Rainbow Monkey challenges viewers to question their own biases through her character complexity?"

There was a momentary pause as Abby and Kuki examined his sincerity, then they both broke into laughter.

"What's so funny?" He asked.

"Nigel, ARE YOU SERIOUS?" Abby said to him. "Character complexity? In Rainbow Monkeys? REALLY?"

Nigel's face broke into a charmed smile as Kuki reached past Abby and squeezed his face with both hands. "You see this face, Abby? THIS is the face of a true friend! You're the best, Nige!"

Their laughter continued, and it was still floating around the table when a familiar voice chimed in from the aisle.

"Heeey, who told you guys to get the party started without me?" Hoagie appeared with all his usual comedian-like charisma.

"HOAGIE!" Kuki exclaimed at the sight of her third best friend. She jumped up and grabbed his cheeks, giggling as she gave them a playful squeeze.

"Ow, ow, ow! Geez, Kuki!"

"I can't help it! You're so cute!"

"In case you all haven't noticed, I lost the baby weight long ago."

"Still some in your cheeks though," Nigel and Abby said in unison, then more laughter ensued.

"Alright, you buttheads. At least Kuki gets points for pointing out how cute I am."

Kuki giggled and scooted over to make space for Hoagie, but just as he crouched down to sit, a hand appeared out of nowhere and grabbed him by the back of his collar. With minimal effort, he was hoisted up and flung to the other side of the booth, leaving Kuki to sit alone on her side.

"Ow! Geez, Wally!"

Kuki's smile faded at the sound of her fourth best friend's name and gulped discreetly as she turned to watch him arrive. Wally appeared into view like an eclipse looming over her in slow motion, his green eyes piercing her from beneath the strands of his scruffy blonde hair. He glanced at her only momentarily as he walked past the open seat next to her and headed for the opposite side of the table instead.

"That was for the noogie you gave me earlier, baby cheeks," He said to Hoagie, punctuating his words with a punch on the shoulder. "MOVE."

"Help, Nigel, he's abusing me!" Hoagie said pseudo-dramatically as he pushed Nigel further into the booth.

"Get off me, Hoagie!"

Everyone scooted further into the booth as Wally claimed the last spot, directly opposite Kuki. His body had grown so lanky these days that he had to keep one of his legs out in the aisle just to be comfortable.

"Hi Wally," Kuki said hesitantly.

Wally's eyes drew towards her and stared at her vacantly, and with barely a hint of a smirk, he returned her greeting with a slight nod.

* * *

"Miss, here's your pizza," said the boy behind the counter as he slid a plate towards Kuki. "Sorry about that. There were a bunch of tables that ordered veggie pizzas. I didn't mean to mix yours up."

"It's not a problem at all!" Kuki replied as she took the plate. "Thank you so much."

She was just about to return to her table when a strange look on the boy's face stopped her. Tilting her head slightly, she asked, "Are you okay?"

The boy stumbled back slightly and blushed. "Uh... Y-yeah... It's just that uh... I'm sorry if this is out of line, but... You're really pretty."

Kuki blinked a few times then a smile spread widely across her face. The kid must have been a few years younger than her, and to see him squirming so helplessly melted her to the core.

"Thank you so much!" She giggled. "You really made my day."

The boy's face colored into a deeper shade of red and, after an awkward nod, he scuttled away.

Still giggling, Kuki happily took a bite out of her pizza and turned around to rejoin the others, but she stopped when she almost ran into what seemed like a wall that had suddenly appeared behind her. Her eyes rolled up and found Wally's green eyes looking down at her, his daunting figure towering over hers.

"Wally...?" She said awkwardly through a mouthful of pizza.

He stared at her vacantly as he quietly chewed on a piece of the pepperoni pizza he was holding. Then his eyes moved towards the pizza on her plate, and his face scrunched up at the sight of the spinach mingling with tomatoes and cheese.

"_VEGGIE _pizza?" He said in disgust.

Kuki swallowed her mouthful of pizza and tried to maintain her usual, cheery tone. "Yeah. It's really good. Wanna try?"

"I'd rather eat dirt."

"I'm sorry you feel that way, but some of us actually like to eat things that grow from the ground."

"I suppose it's better than some of the weird stuff you eat."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You eat tofu."

"What's wrong with tofu?"

Wally smirked. "Tofu should be against the law."

"I like tofu!"

"That's because you're a weirdo."

"Nigel eats tofu too, you know. He says they're great."

"Nigel's a weirdo too. I tell that to his face all the time. Ask him yourself."

Kuki frowned and placed a hand on her hip. "Did you come all the way here just to insult my food preferences?"

"Nope." Looking steadily into her eyes, he brought his pepperoni pizza to his mouth and shoved the rest of the slice in. "I came to order more food. You know - _normal_ food?"

Kuki scowled as Wally smirked through the pile of dough in his mouth, and without another word, she walked away, taking care to bump him on the shoulder as she went past. On her way to the table, she stole a glance at him, and though he was facing the other way, she could tell he was laughing from the way his shoulders shook.

* * *

Kuki was more than happy to spend the rest of lunch talking to Wally as little as possible. Their encounter earlier had left a bad taste in her mouth, and it left her with a desire to interact exclusively with friends who didn't make fun of her. She was just starting to feel safe again when the topic of Rainbow Monkeys came up, and much to her displeasure, Wally seemed determined to seize the opportunity at hand.

"RAINBOW MONKEYS?" He exclaimed, grinning mischievously as his eyes turned towards her. "Isn't that the show you used to watch when we were ten?"

Kuki's insides tensed at the sound of his mocking tone, but she didn't show it. "Yeah. So?"

"And you still like them?"

"So what if I do?"

"How old are you again?"

"Oh, you're one to talk. Don't you still watch the same reruns of wrestling matches from a decade ago?"

"That's different - wrestling is an _art_!"

"You know it's not real wrestling, right?"

"It's more real than a bunch of colorful stuffed monkeys singing songs together."

"Mom, Dad, Wally and Kuki are fighting again," " Hoagie said to Abby and Nigel while mimicking a childish voice.

Nigel and Abby both laughed, but to Kuki's relief, they came to her rescue.

"Alright Wally, that's enough," Nigel said.

"Yeah, Wally, leave her alone," Abby added.

"Well I have to now, don't I?" Wally continued, seemingly encouraged by the reprimand. "I just found out that she still has a fetish for brightly-colored fictional animals. I'm not sure if we could be friends after this."

"Hey, Wally, come on, man..." Hoagie said, his smile fading.

"Than again, maybe you should keep it up," Wally continued, turning his grin back to Kuki, "I'm sure there's a weirdo out there who would be into that. You guys can go out on a date and eat tofu while watching freaky cartoon monkeys together."

"Wally, stop..." Someone - Nigel, Abby, or Hoagie, it didn't matter who at this point - chimed in, but their words only fell on deaf ears. Wally's grin only deepened against his cruel expression.

"Or maybe I should ask you out," he said tauntingly to Kuki, "I have a thing for weirdos, you know..."

By then, Kuki was fuming so hard that she had to grip the edge of her seat just to keep herself from throwing something at him. Vitriol bubbled up inside, and when it rose to her throat, it came out in a cold mutter under her breath, just loudly enough for everyone to hear.

"Like you have a chance. Who would date a jerk like you...?"

The table grew quiet as the grin on Wally's face faded. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Kuki spoke quietly, glaring directly at him as she hissed through gritted teeth. "You are _such_ a jerk."

"You know I was joking, right? I don't care if you like the stupid Rainbow Monkey show."

"It's not just the Rainbow Monkeys, it's everything!" Kuki continued as her volume rose out of her control. "You are _such_ a jerk. ALL THE TIME. You were a jerk when we were kids, you're a jerk in school, and you're a jerk now!"

"Will you RELAX? I said I was joking."

"How do you expect me to relax when I'm forced to be around you all the time?"

The casual mocking expression on Wally's face was gone now, and it was replaced by growing anger. "You think _I_ like being around you?"

"Obviously not, from the way you act around me!"

"You're such a baby."

"And you're a jerk! Jerk! Jerk! JERK!"

"Stop calling me that! You're so annoying!"

"AND YOU'RE A BULLY!"

"I HAVE TO BE A BULLY BECAUSE YOU'RE SO ANNOYING!"

"ALRIGHT, THAT'S ENOUGH!" Nigel's voice, shockingly unrecognizable compared to its normally calm tone, boomed over both of theirs. "You two are making a scene! Shut it down NOW before we get kicked out!"

"Yeah, and BOTH of you need to calm down!" Abby added firmly. "Wally - Kuki's right - grow up and cut it out. And Kuki - stop letting him get to you!"

Both Wally and Kuki crossed their arms and leaned back against their seats, fuming as they turned their eyes away from each other. For a few moments, the table remained silent, until Hoagie took it upon himself to ease the tension.

"So uh... You guys wanna go to the beach some time this summer?" He said clumsily, failing to disguise his blatantly obvious attempt to change the subject.

Following his suit, Nigel and Abby filled the silence in with their own tedious comments, and the three carried on the conversation until the tension eased just enough to be bearable.

Kuki didn't speak to Wally for the rest of the time. She was furious; so furious that her mind raged with all the possible insults she could throw at him had her other friends not been there. Despite her rage, however, she stole a glance at him every now and then, and a small part of her foolishly hoped that she would find him repentant - that there would be regret in his eyes, maybe even followed by an apology. But for every time she allowed herself to look in this direction, she only found a steely glare. Wally's eyes were the same as always - indifferent, insensitive... Cold.

She decided to ignore him for the rest of the afternoon, turning away from him and the rest of the group every now and then, desperately hoping for no one to notice her eyes watering slightly.

* * *

Kuki made it home later that day in a surprisingly lighter mood, much thanks to Hoagie and Nigel offering to walk her home.

"Sorry about Wally, Kuki," Hoagie said as he balanced himself along a stone fence. "He and I were rough-housing before we came to the Cheezaria. Sometimes when we spend too much time together, he gets carried away and forgets to act like a normal person when we're around people again."

"And you know how Wally is," Nigel added. "He's not a bad guy, he just tends to make rash decisions."

"I know, I know..." Kuki sighed. "I still don't think it was okay for him to say those things to me though."

"Oh, trust me. Abby will make sure he knows that."

Kuki smiled at the thought. She could picture it now - Wally shoving his hands in his pockets, shrugging his shoulders, and pouting like a child while Abby gave him an earful.

"It's just that..." Kuki continued, "I feel like over the last few years, he and I have been fighting so much. Sometimes I wonder if we're even actually friends."

"Of course you are," Nigel put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.

"But he's so mean to me!"

"He's mean because he's dumb!" Hoagie, who had fallen behind as he balanced his last few steps along the fence, called out after them. He hopped off the fence and jogged up towards them. "Don't worry, Kuki, we'll knock some sense into him."

Kuki let out another sigh before slipping each of her arms into theirs and pulling them close. She nuzzled a cheek into Hoagie's shoulder, then Nigel's.

"Why couldn't Wally be like you guys?" She said sadly.

"Trust us, you don't need him to change," Nigel said to her, his eyes soft and comforting. "Just give him time."

"Yeah," Hoagie added. "He'll come around. We promise."

Kuki smiled at them sweetly, even though deep inside, she didn't believe them.

* * *

Later that day, she laid in bed staring at the ceiling as she replayed the argument over and over in her head. _What's his problem? _She thought again and again.

She turned to her side and looked at a photograph on her bedside table. It was a picture of her and her friends from seven years ago when they were all just ten years old. To the very left was her - smiling brightly as she stood arm-in-arm with a young Abby. Right in the middle was Nigel who, even back then, already had the same charming smile he has now. After him was Hoagie, hardly recognizable from his former plumpness if not for the same cheesy grin.

And then there was Wally.

Wally stood all the way to the right of the frame with his arms crossed, scowling beneath Hoagie's arm. Even back then, he was already grumpy and hot-tempered. Kuki used to think it was a way to overcompensate for his tiny frame as a child, but given that he towered over everyone nowadays, she couldn't fathom another excuse. There was no conceivable reason as to why he was so gruff and unfriendly, and particularly so whenever he was around her. He _always_ had something rude to say, _always _had an insult reserved just for her. It was as if he derived a certain pleasure in pushing her buttons, almost as if he enjoyed being...

"…A jerk," Kuki said out loud.

She gave out an exasperated sigh. Looking at the picture once more, she now noticed that everything about her and Wally stood on opposite ends. She stood to the very left while he stood to the very right. She was happily arm-in-arm with Abby while he scowled beneath Hoagie's unwanted arm around his shoulders. She was smiling widely and happily while he was pouting childishly towards the camera.

Kuki wondered now if that detail had been more significant all along. She and Wally had been opposites for as long as she could remember. It's been that way since the beginning of their so-called friendship. Even now, she could see how they fit into the group. They were like bookends holding a set together, standing on completely opposite sides while everyone else stood in between. Nigel, being the natural leader of the group, was like a brother to both of them. Likewise, Abby was like a sister. And Hoagie, being the neutral point, toggled back and forth between being Kuki's favorite joker and Wally's partner-in-crime. All in all, it seemed like they had an actual friendship with everyone except each other, and all that was left there was...

Awkward.

Kuki scowled as the image of Wally came to mind - his insensitive eyes, he mocking grin, his mischievous laugh... She hated the way he cracked his knuckles and the pure arrogance with which he did it. She hated the way he constantly ruffled his hair - with complete and utter disregard for the way he looked to the people around him. She hated it. She hated it all...

Except she didn't really hate it. And she didn't really hate him.

Kuki buried her face in her pillow as if it would stop the thoughts slowly seeping into her mind, but it was too late. Because the truth is...

She liked him. She liked everything about him.

She liked the confidence with which he cracked his knuckles, and how casual, relaxed, and perpetually messy his hair was. She liked the way he laughed, how it was a perfect song of everything that he was - boyishly charming, mischievous yet playful, rough yet oddly smooth... She liked his smile - wide, perfect, sometimes devilish, sometimes charming. And his eyes... His ever-so-green, ever-so-piercing eyes... They made her weak, no matter how distant or insensitive or cold they were, and even weaker in the rare occasion when she would catch him looking at her sincerely.

Kuki groaned into her pillow. What would everyone say if they found out that she actually liked him? Even worse, what would _he _say?

_He'd probably laugh in my face..._

The thought stung. They could barely get along as friends. Could she really expect anything more?

Her eyes landed back on the picture next to her bed, and she thought of the vast distance that stood between her and Wally.

"That's exactly what it is," she told herself, "We're meant to be on different sides…"


	2. The Different Half

The early days of summer trickled past, and soon the initial excitement over the newfound freedom from school faded into a weary boredom. Having exhausted their trips to the Cheezaria, Kuki and her friends now sought other forms of entertainment. Fortunately for them, Nigel had an oversized shed his in his backyard where they had all installed their interests over the last few years. There was a corner for reading, a couch and a TV, a table for snacks and card games, a lounge area, and all sorts of other widgets that covered whatever any of them fancied. It was their regular hangout, and it was where they headed almost daily once their summer excitement evolved into a collective boredom.

Much to everyone's surprise, the week that followed Wally and Kuki's argument actually went by conflict-free. Despite a palpable tension in the beginning, it was evident that they both wanted to keep the peace, and thus progressed a peaceful few days. Other than an occasional grunt from Wally or a polite "please" or "thank you" from Kuki, hardly a word passed between them. As awkward as it was, Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie couldn't help but be relieved. It was nice to get a break from their constant bickering. Unfortunately for three, the peace was short-lived. Just when things were starting to calm down, it all changed after the arrival of an unexpected visitor.

* * *

It was one of those types of summer days where time seemed to pass slower than the sun moving across the sky. With nothing to do for the day, the group gathered at the clubhouse and absorbed themselves with their own activities. Nigel and Hoagie sat at the table, playing a game of chess; Abby lounged in a beanbag, flipping through a magazine; and Wally and Kuki sat in opposite ends of the couch, watching TV.

"Hey, I was watching that!" Kuki said as the channel changed.

"Too bad. I have the remote."

"You're not the only one watching, you know."

"Don't care."

"Jerk..."

There was a unified pause in the room as Abby, Hoagie, and Nigel all stopped what they were doing to see what would ensue. Wally's reaction hung in the air for a moment, but to the three's relief, he retaliated with a casual, "Whatever..."

Seeing the crisis was averted, Nigel got up and headed towards the door. "I'm going to the kitchen to get some snacks," He announced. "Anyone want anything?"

The room exploded with various requests.

"Get me some chips. LOTS OF IT."

"Make sure it's tortilla chips."

"And salsa!"

"Do you guys have corn dogs?"

"And bean dip!"

"You still have those popsicles from the other other day?"

"And GUAC!"

"Do you have fruits? I could really use an apple right now."

"Ooh, grapes would really hit the spot too."

"Soda! Don't forget the soda!"

"I could use some water too."

Nigel peered over the top of his glasses and frowned like a grumpy old man. Kuki couldn't help but laugh at the sight of it. Sometimes Nigel reminded her of her dad.

"I'll go give you a hand, Nigel," She offered as she got up from the couch.

"Thank you, Kuki."

Ten minutes later, Kuki returned with half of the snacks, and after pouring them onto the table, she made her way back to the couch. She stopped when she found that a pair of dirty sneakers had taken her place. Wally's face was full of satisfaction as he shamelessly lounged across the entire length of the couch.

"Hey, that's my spot!" She said to him.

"You snooze, you lose."

"Can you move?"

"Say please."

"...Please."

"Nope."

Wally never took his eyes off the TV, but Kuki could see the corners of his mouth twitching up from a repressed smile. She let out an exasperated puff.

"You don't wanna move? FINE."

She hopped over the couch and landed on his legs, taking care to make her point by twisting her body firmly into place.

"Hey, get off my legs!"

"No!"

"GET OFF!"

"NO!"

Wally's mouth cracked into a mischievous smile before he lunged forward and grabbed Kuki by the waist, and as if she weighed nothing, he picked her up and tried to toss her off the couch. He laughed at first when he appeared to have succeeded, but there was a sudden halt when both of them realized that the remote control was sitting far behind him, completely unguarded. A grin spread spread across Kuki's face, and Wally caught on to her intentions just a second too late as she dove past him and wrapped her fingers around the remote. She squealed triumphantly only to realize that she had celebrated too soon. Wally landed right on top of her, and soon they became a tangled mess of laughter and fighting.

"Ow! Get off me!"

"Give me that remote!"

"No! You said it yourself - you snooze, you lose!"

"GIVE IT TO ME!"

"NO!"

"How are you this strong? You're so tiny!"

Over at the table, Abby and Hoagie looked at each other with astonished smiles as the chaos on the couch slowly became more and more riddled with laughter.

"You seriously think you can win this? I'm on the wrestling team!"

"You must be a crappy wrestler then because I still have the remote, don't I?!"

"Give it to me!"

"NO!"

"Fine, I'll just have to stay on top of you all day."

"Get off me! You're heavy!"

"Nope. I'm comfortable just like this.

The playful commotion was interrupted when Nigel appeared at the doorway with a puzzled look on his face. At first, it was a natural reaction to the sight of Wally and Kuki laughing together, but soon it became evident that there was an entirely different matter occupying his mind.

"Uh, Kuki?" He called. "There's someone at the door for you."

The laughter faded as Wally and Kuki stopped to look at him.

"Who is it?" Kuki asked.

"He said his name is Wallace."

The smile that was lingering on Kuki's face disappeared instantly, and she quickly slid out from underneath Wally, abandoning the remote control that suddenly no longer held his interest.

"Uh... Thanks, Nigel. I'll take it from here."

She was just about to head out the door when, suddenly, a mass of brawn and beach-blonde hair came charging into the room.

"There's the most beautiful girl in all of Gallagher Heights!" Said the unexpected visitor as he took Kuki into a bear hug and spun her around. "Sorry for barging in, man," he said to Nigel afterwards. "I couldn't wait to see my girl."

The room went silent. Twirling her fingers awkwardly, Kuki blushed as she felt all eyes in the room fall on her. She cleared her throat uncomfortably and proceeded in the only way she could. "Uh... Everyone, this is Wallace. He's - "

"- her boyfriend."

"Well, no... Or... Yes and no... It's more like... Uh... We're dating."

Three jaws dropped simultaneously as Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie eyed Kuki and this so-called Wallace back and forth. A long, mortifying silence followed until, to Kuki's relief, Nigel broke it by clearing his throat.

"I'm sorry. Where are my manners?" He said as he reached out a hand. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Nigel."

"Good to meet you, man!" Said Wallace.

"And uh..." Hoagie followed through and approached, an awkward chuckle riddling his sentences. "I'm Hoagie."

"Hoagie! You must be Baby Cheeks!"

Kuki's head sank between her shoulders. "Wallace, don't call him that..."

"What? You're the one who told me all about it. And I gotta say - I see what they mean, bro."

Wallace reached up a hand and lightly tapped Hoagie's cheek. Poor Hoagie only winced away, too nice to say anything in his defense.

"And _you_ must be Abby!" Wallace made his way to Abby, absurdly blind to the blatant scowl plastered across her face. Kuki watched in horror as Wallace flashed a big, cheeky smile at her and held his hand out. She responded by tepidly shaking his hand. "Geez, Kuki, are all of your girlfriends this hot?"

This time, Kuki was the target of Abby's glare, and she could only save herself by innocently averting her eyes.

Wallace placed his hands on his hips and looked around the room. "So these are your friends, huh?"

"Not all of them," said a voice from the back of the room.

Kuki froze at the sound of the cold, rigid voice coming from behind her. Wallace's arrival had been such a shock that she completely forgot who else was in the room. She listened as shoes slowly tapped against the wooden floors, then Wally appeared next to her, his face vacant and his eyes cold. He reached out a hand. "I'm Wally."

Wallace took his hand and shook it. "Geez, that's a good grip, bro. You play sports?"

"Mostly wrestling and soccer, but I play a bit of everything."

"Ah. A man after my own heart. I'm an athlete myself. Swimmer. Trying to get into the Olympics someday."

"Mm."

Wally's voice had the cold, hard steeliness of movie mercenary trying to make a kill, and Kuki shrank at the sight of him leveling Wallace with his eyes. Soon it was evident that she wasn't the only one who picked up on the atmosphere. Once again, Nigel's impeccable manners came to the rescue.

"So, how did you two meet?" He said to Wallace.

"We met at the pool a few days ago. I'm a lifeguard there. I tell ya, man. As soon as I saw her in that swimsuit, I just _had_ to come talk to her." Wallace put a broad arm around Kuki's shoulders and pulled her close. "Right, babe?"

"_Babe?_"Abby repeated incredulously. Kuki sheepishly met her eyes, which were now looking at her with bloody murder. "_BABE?"_

Kuki's face flipped into a panicked smile. "Wallace!" She said suddenly. "Have you eaten yet? Wanna go to the Cheezaria?"

"Oh man, I LOVE the Cheezaria!"

"GREAT! Let's go! Like, NOW!"

Avoiding everyone's gaze, Kuki grabbed Wallace's wrist and started dragging him out of the clubhouse. He hardly had a chance to bid everyone goodbye when Kuki slammed the door shut behind them. Despite her efforts, however, she failed to completely avoid everyone's gaze. In the split second before the door closed, she caught a glimpse of Wally's face and was surprised to find his eyes almost unrecognizable in the way they looked after her. The farther she got from the headquarters, the harder it became to shake the image of those eyes away from her head. Wally's eyes had all the usual mystery and coldness to them, but at the same time she could have sworn that there was something there that she's never seen before.


	3. The Bigger Man

Beaches are stupid. That's what Wally concluded a week later as he slumped back in his chair, crossed his arms, and glared at the sunny, sandy landscape before him. Out in the water, Kuki was squealing happily as Wallace chased her. The sight of her enjoying herself made Wally want to jam a jellyfish down Wallace's throat.

"Hey Wally, check this out."

Wally turned and watched blankly as Hoagie took an armful of sand and added it to the mound that was already covering his body.

"Eh?" Hoagie encouraged. "Looks fun, doesn't it?"

Wally responded with a vacant stare before rolling his eyes and turning his gaze back towards the shore. Wallace had gotten a hold of a laughing Kuki and was now spinning her around. While little droplets of seawater flew off her toes, a low growl escaped from Wally's throat.

"This is your fault, you know," Abby said beside him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Wally said stubbornly.

Abby sat up on her beach chair, took off her sunglasses, and gave him a stern look. "Let me spell it out for you. If you hadn't been such a jerk to her, she wouldn't be dating that living dumbell."

"Yeah, Wally," Hoagie added as he patted his sandy armor into place. "It could've been you out there with her."

Wally's eyebrows twitched as a deeper frown carved into his face. "I don't know what you guys are talking about," He said again, more firmly this time.

"Oh please," Nigel said from further down the row, behind Abby. "You're so obvious, it's ridiculous. Until Wallace came along, you were like a kindergartner chasing her across the playground and pulling on her pigtails. I'm surprised she didn't have a clue."

Wally groaned. He hated it when Nigel was right. He hated it when _all_ his friends were right. Feeling the frustration welling up inside him, he grabbed a small strand of seaweed on the ground and started angrily ripping it into pieces. Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie watched quietly as he took out his frustrations on the poor, lifeless thing. For a minute, he looked like his ten-year-old self again - red, puffy, and pathetically violent. Nigel sighed.

"Alright, that's it," he said as he got up. He reached into his beach-bag and took out a football. "Let's go."

"Go where?" Wally grunted as he tore the last bits of seaweed to shreds.

"We're gonna play ball."

"Not interested."

"I don't care. Let's go."

Wally scowled at the sound of Nigel doing his Dad-voice, where a certain finality started punctuating all his sentences. By then, Wally knew that it pointless to resist, but he was determined to rebel.

"Come on, Wally," Hoagie whined as he got up. Mounds of sand slid off his body, which he dusted off before joining Nigel at his side. "We need to distract you. We're tired of you moping around like this. You're bumming us out."

"Nigel, Hoagie..." Wally said quietly. He allowed them a moment to listen in before he continued. "Get the cruddy football out of my face or I'll clock both of you."

Wally knew he was in trouble now, but Nigel and Hoagie weren't the ones to be feared. As soon as he saw Abby getting up in the corner of his eyes, he knew he was done for. He braced himself for Abby's Mom-voice.

"BOY, IF YOU DON'T GET YOUR BUTT OFF THAT CHAIR I'M GONNA CLOCK YOU SO HARD YOU'RE GONNA WISH YOUR MAMA - "

"Hi guys!" They all looked up as Kuki appeared, Wallace trailing closely behind her. "What's going on?"

Abby's face turned red, her cheeks puffing as she forced her mouth shut.

"Nothing," Hoagie said casually. "We were just have a friendly conversation about...uh...seaweeds..."

Nigel planted his face into his palm.

"Oh..." Kuki said innocently. "Well... I was just coming over to say that you guys should get in. The water's great."

"Except you, little buddy," Wallace interjected as he patted Wally's shoulder. "I heard you can't swim!"

There was a collective pause among the group as they all watched Wally's eyes roll up towards Wallace, his stare blazing as the last of the seaweed oozed out of from his balled-up fingers.

"Uh, actually, that was only when we were kids..." Kuki said as she pulled Wallace back. "Wally can swim really well. In fact, he once saved me from drowning in his pool."

Wallace let out a cocky chuckle. "Still funny though. Anyway, let's go back in the water, babe."

"Um, actually, I think I'm going to hang out here for a bit. I'm a little tired."

"What? Come on, babe! That's no fun!"

"No, Wallace, really. I'd rather hang out here for now. Maybe build a sandcastle or something."

"A sand castle? What are you, ten? Come on!"

Wallace took Kuki by the elbow and started pulling her towards the shore.

"Wallace, stop..." She begged kindly at first, but she soon protested more firmly when she realized that he wasn't listening. "Wallace, stop!"

"Come ON, babe!" Wallace said forcefully.

Wallace switched from pulling her by the elbow to pulling her by the waist, and soon a round of protests rose from Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie as they all watched her being dragged away.

"Wallace, she said NO!"

"Let go of her!"

"Get your hands off her!"

It all fell on deaf ears until one voice, hoarse with anger, over-powered the rest.

"WALLACE!"

Everyone turned their heads to find that Wally had gotten up from his chair. There was a tense silence for a moment as those who knew him well saw the fire burning in his eyes. To everyone's surprise, however, he calmly grabbed the football in Nigel's hands.

"Let's play ball," He said to Wallace. His tone was deadly.

Blithely ignorant to the tension around him, Wallace let go of Kuki and started jogging on the spot. "NICE! That's what I'm talking about! Later, babe."

He pecked Kuki on the cheek and jogged away. Wally followed him calmly, quietly, looking like a jaguar stalking its prey. When he was out of earshot, the rest of the group turned back to Kuki.

"Are you okay?" Hoagie asked.

"Yeah!" Kuki said, trying to make herself sound as lively as possible. "Wallace just tends to get carried away sometimes, that's all..."

She smiled pathetically at the three of them, but none of them returned the expression.

"Um... I think I'm gonna go get a drink."

She turned her eyes away as she walked past them and made her way towards the food stand. Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie turned back towards where Wally now stood. Several yards away, Wallace was dancing around, taunting him.

"Come on! Give me your best shot!"

Even from a distance, they all saw the deadly accuracy that focused in Wally's eyes and the lethal smile that curled in the corner of his lips. He planted the ball firmly in his hand, drew his arm back, then shot the ball towards his target. It spiraled perfectly through the air and landed directly in Wallace's cupped arms. For a moment, Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie were surprised by the perfect catch, but soon it became evident that a miss wasn't Wally's intention. Wallace keeled over and coughed from the impact.

"Oh boy..." Hoagie sighed.

"You guys should probably join them before Wally kills him," Abby shook her head.

"I agree," Nigel added. "Let's go, Hoagie."

The two boys jogged towards Wallace, who was still bent over and badly pretending that he was fine. Abby walked over to where Wally stood. Even before she got close, she could see the grin that now spread across his face.

"You happy now?" She asked him.

Wally's first instinct was to deny whatever she was getting at, but the sight of Wallace bent over from pain was too good to repress. "Yeah," He said contently. "I do feel a little bit better."

They both laughed quietly as they watched Wallace trying to straighten up while swiping away Nigel and Hoagie's aid.

"Well if that makes you feel good," Abby said to Wally, "You should see the look on her face."

Wally looked at her, his grin fading into a curious expression. Abby sighed at his obliviousness, and after a subtle nod towards the food stand, she walked away.

Wally's eyes found Kuki immediately. She was looking towards her boyfriend's direction, but to Wally's surprise, she wasn't horrified or concerned. There was no denying it - he could see the corners of her lips curling up behind a hand that tried to conceal her smile and her shoulders were twitching from her amusement. She as _laughing_. It wasn't until she found him gazing at her that she wiped the smile off her face and turned away.

A satisfied smirk found its way back to Wally's face as he turned back to the other boys. The beach wasn't so bad after all.


	4. An Unpleasant Surprise

Kuki's brows knotted together as she leaned her cheek on her hand for support. She was trying her damnedest to find something - anything - engaging about what sat before her. Wallace's mouth sure was moving, but none of the words coming out were registering. And if Kuki really cared to know, she didn't have to ask. She could already guess that it was was probably just another ramble about another competition that he won.

"Babe, did you hear what I said?"

Kuki blinked back into to consciousness. "Huh?"

"You weren't listening! I was telling you about my big moment at the last swim meet."

"Oh, right. Sorry. What happened again?"

Wallace sighed, feigning disappointment at the necessity of telling the story again. He started from the beginning. "It was last year during peak season..."

As soon as he started babbling, Kuki's mind exited the conversation again. She frowned at her own boredom. It's been three weeks since they started dating. In just another week, it'll officially be a month. Wasn't she supposed to feel something by now? She wasn't expecting to be in love, but she was at least expecting _something_.

She wondered now what led her to this position in the first place. What exactly was it about Wallace that attracted her again? Was it the good looks? Was it the athleticism? Was it his charm?

Kuki frowned. Charm wasn't exactly what she would call whatever Wallace was. In fact, if she were truly to be honest with herself, she would call it the opposite.

As her eyes lingered on his face, her mind wandered over to features that she secretly wished were different. Wallace was a broad, muscular guy. It was certainly attractive to most girls, but Kuki wished now that he might have been a little taller, a little lankier. His blonde hair was neat and gelled down to a perfect style, but Kuki wished it could be a little longer and just a tad bit scruffier. And his eyes, bluer than the midday sky, were certainly attractive - but Kuki wished they could be just a little bit more piercing, a little less blue, and a lot more...green.

"...and as soon as I saw the stats, I just KNEW I had it in the bag!"

Wallace put his hands behind his head and leaned back, beaming with satisfaction at the ending of his own story. Kuki smiled in relief as she realized that she snapped back just in time to look convincing.

"That's awesome, Wallace!" She said through a forced smile.

It ended there. She didn't know what else to say.

Wallace was just about to begin another tale when Kuki seized the opportunity for a distraction.

"Hey, I'm hungry. Do you wanna go get some food?" She said.

"Sure! On the way there, I can tell you about my training routine this summer, then we can decide when you can come and watch me."

Kuki groaned inside. "Sure... Looking forward to it...

* * *

Wallace talked the _entire_ time they walked to the restaurant. And he didn't just talk about anything, he talked non-stop about himself. Swim meets, trophies, medals, training - it all cycled through Kuki's ears without any foreseeable end.

The more he babbled, the more her mind drew towards the thought of her friends. She wondered what they were all doing now - Nigel, Abby, Hoagie, and even...

"Wally!"

Kuki lit up at the sight of Wally standing outside a shop down the street. She was so delighted to see him that she didn't have time to wonder how Wallace might have reacted to her evident excitement. She ran over to where Wally stood.

"What are you doing here?" She asked him.

Wally shifted uncomfortably as he looked back and forth between her and the store beside them. He was just about to say something when -

"Wallyyyyyyyyy!"

The store doors burst open and Kuki saw a mane of bouncy, red curls flying past. Next thing she saw was a pair of dainty arms wrapping around Wally's neck.

"Where were you?" An overly cutesy, high-pitched voice squeaked out of the creature that now clung to his neck. "I turned around and you were gone."

Wally's eyes darted uncomfortably to Kuki for a moment.

"It's not exactly my kind of store," He said to the girl before him.

"Awww, but I wanted you to help me pick out a dress..."

Kuki's eyes widened as the girl's face leaned in towards Wally's. It was like watching a collision in slow motion - she wanted to turn away from the impending horror but there was also a sickening fascination that made her want to watch.

"Uh, Kathy...!" Wally said suddenly, just a split second before their lips made contact. He took the girl by the shoulders - Kathy, her name apparently was - and turned her the other way. "I have someone I'd like you to meet."

Kathy's sharp brown eyes landed on Kuki and immediately narrowed as she took her in. There was something of a natural scowl on her face that reminded Kuki of cats.

"Hi," Kuki said politely and held out her hand. "I'm Kuki. I'm a friend of Wally's."

Still wearing her catty scowl, Kathy stepped forward, took Kuki's hand, and shook it lightly.

"I like your earrings," She said flatly, referring to the Rainbow Monkey studs on Kuki's ears. "Where did you get them?"

"Oh these? I've had them since I was ten."

Kathy tilted her head and smiled sweetly, but there was something so unnerving, so marionette-like about the way she smiled, that Kuki couldn't bring herself to return the gesture. Suddenly, Kathy livened with animation as she skipped back to Wally and hugged his arm.

"Wallykins," She said in a kittenish tone, "I want those earrings. Can we go find some?"

"Um...HELLO?" A voice said behind Kuki. She jumped at the sound of it. She completely forgot that Wallace was with her. "Babe, aren't you going to to introduce me?"

"Oh right... Um, Kathy, this is Wallace. He's - "

"- her boyfriend!" Wallace interjected.

Kathy perked at the sound of the word _boyfriend_. Suddenly looking more like a friendly kitten, she skipped forward and happily shook his hand.

"Welp, this was fun," Wallace said as he turned to Kuki. "Babe, can we go? I'm starving."

As soon as Kuki felt Wallace's fingers wrap around her hand, it dawned on her that she was doomed to another few hours of his epic-but-not-really-epic sagas about his swim meets.

"Do you guys wanna join us?!" She blurted towards Wally and Kathy's direction.

Her face sank as soon as she realized what came out of her mouth.

Wally's face stiffened, but Kathy - having acknowledged the existence of Kuki's boyfriend - now smiled excitedly. She tightened her arms around Wally's arm. "We would love to! I LOVE double dates!"

"Great..." Kuki said as her head sank between her shoulders. She turned around and started walking. "Glad you guys could join us..."

* * *

It was in some way fortunate that the rest of the walk didn't last long. After all, they were only one more block away from the restaurant when they ran in to the unexpected (though Kuki would rather call it unpleasant) surprise.

Despite the short trip, Wallace managed to fill every second with another swim meet story while Kathy seemed preoccupied in lacing it with Wally's comparable athleticism. Kuki walked quietly behind, relieved that his attention was focused on the new listener.

When they got to the restaurant, Wallace was still so caught up in his own story that that he slipped through the doors without the slightest attention to anyone. Kuki jumped back as the door slammed in front of her. Groaning, she was just about to reach for the door handle when a long set of fingers reached out and pulled the door open for her.

Kuki blinked as she met Wally's eyes. The gesture caught her with such surprise that she momentarily struggled to decide whether she should thank him or question him. She also found herself wondering if he had always opened doors for her and she just never noticed.

"Go on," He said quietly, nodding towards the the restaurant.

Kuki's puzzled face formed into a smile. She was just about to step in when Kathy suddenly flew by from behind.

"Thank you, Wallykins! You're such a gentleman!" Kathy said as she blew kisses at him and disappeared into the restaurant.

Kuki pretended not to hear Wally groan and meekly followed after her.

* * *

This is what teenage hell is made out of. Kuki was sure of it.

Next to her, Wallace babbled on about yet another Wallace-centered tale, while across the table, Kathy doted on Wally non-stop. Not a minute went by where she wasn't clinging her arms around his neck.

Kuki couldn't help but shift uncomfortably in her seat. Wally, on the other hand, was like a statue. If he wasn't scowling forward at Wallace, he was frowning sideways at Kathy, but not once did he look at Kuki. At least not while she was aware.

"By the way, you still owe me a rematch, man!" Wallace said to Wally. "I was having an off-day at the beach."

He then spent the next few minutes throwing in one excuse after another - he wasn't feeling it that day, the sun was in his eyes, Wally got a head-start, football wasn't that great of a sport anyway...

"Wallace..." Wally said tiredly after some time, "I _really_ don't care."

Kuki grew alarmed as Wallace sat up aggressively, looking like a silver-back gorilla about to charge. It certainly didn't help that Wally sat stoically without breaking eye-contact. She thought quickly.

"So, Kathy!" She said loudly enough to distract both guys. Thankfully, it worked. "Tell us how you and Wally met."

"Oh, it was the CUTEST thing," Kathy said, her arms tightening around Wally slightly. "I was out shopping and I had on this _really_ cute dress when I bumped into him. He was coming out of a toy store carrying all sorts of stuff - teddy bears, toy trucks, a glow-in-the-dark Rainbow monkey... It was ADORABLE!"

Wallace snorted and smirked at Wally. "A _Rainbow Monkey_? What are you, a little girl?!"

Wally ignored him.

"He was buying it for his little brother. Isn't that sweet?!" Kathy squealed.

A smile formed across Kuki's face - the first time she genuinely smiled today. "Yes, that _is_ sweet..."

"Anyway, I took one look at him and I _knew_ I just had to talk to him. There was no way I was going to let such a tall, dreamy guy slip through my fingers!"

Kathy planted a kiss on Wally's cheek. This time, Kuki managed to look away.

"I know exactly what you mean," Wallace said to Kathy. "That's exactly how I felt when I first saw Kuki. There was no way I was gonna let her get away. And now look at us!" He put an arm around Kuki and pulled her close. "We're like _the_ perfect couple! She's my biggest fan. If I were a football player, she'd be my cheerleader."

Kuki raised an eyebrow and looked at him. "A cheerleader? Really?"

"Well, yeah. That's what girls do, they cheer for the guys."

A big, incredulous frown spread across Kuki's face as she could hardly believe what she was hearing. "Girls play sports too, you know."

"Yeah, I guess," Wallace said with a dismissive shrug. "But let's be real - most girls aren't really fit for sports. I mean, look at you. You can't even throw a football past two feet!"

Kuki stared at Wallace incredulously, her jaw dropping at the mind-boggling ignorance of what he said.

"You know Kuki dances ballet, right?" Wally's voice floated between them.

Wallace and Kuki looked at him. "What's that have to do with sports?" Wallace said.

Wally stared at him with his signature, steady gaze. "Ballerinas are some of the most athletic people in the world. It takes a lot of strength and flexibility to dance ballet, sometimes more than certain sports. You should look it up." His eyes then moved from Wallace to Kuki. "I've seen her dance. She's really good."

Kuki stared at him, stunned, as countless memories of her friends attending her ballet recitals raced through her mind, each one impossible to recall each without remembering Wally's complaints.

_Ballet is so boring._

_I hate dressing up._

_Can't we just tell her she did a good job and leave?_

She never would have imagined a situation like now, with Wally using her dancing skills in her defense.

"I'm just saying..." Wally said as he took a sip of water. "You might learn a thing or two from an athlete like her."

Kuki bowed her head to conceal a smile as Wallace's face screwed up into a childish pout. Meanwhile, Kathy tightened her arms around Wally yet again.

"My Wallykins is sooooo refined!" She said dreamily.

* * *

After what seemed like an eternity later, Kuki couldn't be happier to see that their double-date from hell was about to end, but she hated realizing it form the number of french fries left on Kathy's plate. All throughout the meal, Kathy had insisted on feeding Wally french fries and - much to Kuki's surprise - he was uncharacteristically obliging. Kuki could only blame his body. Goodness knows Wally would let anyone hand-feed him as long as it subdued his raging appetite.

Wally opened his mouth to take another bite but withdrew as soon as he noticed that it wasn't a french fry being offered.

"I'm not eating that," He said flatly.

Kuki noticed the asparagus hanging between Kathy's fingers. Wally _hated_ asparagus. It was a running joke among their group that a seventeen-year-old boy would have such hatred for a vegetable, but as it was, he detested them with a passion.

"Oh come on," Kathy beckoned, hoping to convince him by making her voice extra cute.

"Get it out of my face, Kathy," Wally said with a hint of threat.

"Wally," Kathy said sternly, the cutesiness in her voice gone.

Wally's expression went from cool stoicism to a blazing scowl. "I said,_ NO_."

Apart from Wallace's low snickering, the table had gone quiet as Kathy's kitten-like face transformed into a childish pout. Kuki watched tensely as her faced turned as red as her hair. She didn't know whether to laugh or to be scared. Kathy looked like an animated teapot, steaming and ready to burst.

"Wally, if you don't do as I say, I will _make _a _scene,_" Kathy said through gritted teeth. "Now, _eat it._"

Wally and Kathy held each other's glare for a moment, and to Kuki's dismay, Wallace chimed in. "Awww come on, Wallykins. Don't disappoint your girlfriend!"

Without breaking off his rigid glare, Wally leaned in and took the bite.

Wallace jumped back and roared with laughter while Kathy's face flipped like a switch and went from angry to bright and happy. "Awww, you're so cuuuuuute!" She squealed.

Wallace and Kathy were both so wrapped up in their own mirth that only Kuki witnessed it when Wally swiftly turn his head to the side and spit the asparagus out into a napkin. His eyes met hers when he turned back to the table, and Kuki could only smile as she wordlessly promised not to tell.


	5. Friendship

The burst of fresh air that greeted Kuki as they all exited the restaurant was like a giant breath of relief. Having gone through the double-date from hell, she happily resigned to an afternoon of listening to Wallace's endless self-absorption. However torturous it was, it had to be better than the awkwardness of what she had just experienced.

"Alright, babe. I gotta go," Wallace suddenly said to her. "I've got plans with the boys."

"You do?!" Kuki said, perking up. She immediately regretted how excited she sounded but was instantly relieved that he didn't notice. "I mean... Sure. Have lots of fun, okay?"

"You bet!"

Wallace pecked her on the cheek, and after a curt nod at Wally and a friendly wave at Kathy, he jogged down the street and disappeared into the crowd.

Kuki smiled at the prospect of an afternoon without him.

"Well..." She said as she turned around. Wally was swatting Kathy's hands away as she tried to reach up and meddle with his hair. "I guess I'll see you guys around."

Kathy barely heard her, but Wally looked up.

"What are you doing for the rest of the day?" He asked.

"Nothing," Kuki said. "I think I'll just head home."

Wally looked like he wanted to say something, but he was interrupted when Kathy hooked her arms around his neck.

"Wallykins, take me to the mall."

Wally sighed. "Kathy, we were just there yesterday."

"But I forgot to get shoes! I was gonna buy the pink ones with the straps, remember? Besides, I still want you to help me pick out a dress!"

"Can't you do it by yourself?"

Kathy slowly evolved into a steaming kettle again. Not wanting to see the final form, Kuki decided to make her escape. She waved at Wally one last time and snuck away before Kathy could explode.

* * *

A crease formed between Kuki's eyebrows as she walked home. It had only been ten minutes since she left the restaurant, and while she savored the absence of Wallace's constant prattling, she couldn't help but be preoccupied by today's revelation.

The thought of Kathy's arms around Wally's neck consumed her. Even more consuming were the dozens of questions that now plagued her mind. When did they meet? How long have they been dating? Did he ask her out, or did she force him on a date? Does he like her? Is he serious about her?

Kuki stopped and buried her eyes in her hands.

"What am I thinking...?" She groaned to herself. "I have a boyfriend."

"Do you always mumble to yourself when you walk?"

Kuki gasped at the sound of Wally's voice and stared with wide-eyed shock when she found him standing beside her. "Wally? What are you doing here?"

"I've been calling after you for the last thirty seconds, but I don't think you heard me. You seemed distracted."

Kuki looked behind her and half-expected to see a furious Kathy charging down the road.

"Where's Kathy?"

"She went to the mall."

"Weren't you supposed to go with her?"

Wally scoffed. "If she thinks she can just boss me around like the way she does, she's got another thing coming."

Kuki wondered for a moment what might have transpired after she left them. "Won't she be mad?"

"She'll get over it."

Wally seemed resolved. He dug his hands in his pockets and started walking down the sidewalk.

"You coming?" He said when he noticed that she hadn't moved.

Kuki was hesitant for a moment, hyper-aware of the fact that they would be alone together, but she pushed the thought to the back of her mind. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear then joined him.

* * *

They walked silently for a while, accompanied only by the sound of their shoes scratching against the pavement. Kuki combed her mind for anything to talk about, not wanting the entire trip to fall victim to the usual awkwardness of their friendship. She wondered if he was thinking the same thing.

"That was a nice story that Kathy told," She said after some time.

"What story?"

"About the toys. You were buying them for Joey?"

"Oh right... Yeah, he's been having trouble sleeping. That's what the Glow-in-the-Dark Rainbow Monkey was for."

Kuki smiled. It was amusing to hear him say _Rainbow Monkey_ without even a hint of mockery.

"Besides, it's not like I can take full credit. It was your idea."

Kuki blinked in surprise as she thought back to a conversation she had with him a few months back. From the way he scoffed back then, she never would have imagined that he would take her advice seriously.

"He likes you, you know."

Kuki looked at him, puzzled. "Who?"

"Joey."

"Really?"

"Yeah, he's crazy about you. He's always asking me when you're coming over. Last week, I even caught him trying to follow me out of the house because he knew I was heading out to see you and the others."

Kuki giggled. She adored Joey. He was a scruffy, hot-headed little 7-year-old who had a knack for tackling things. It reminded her of a certain someone when they were his age.

"Well, I suppose he has a new person to distract him now," Kuki said, masking her sadness with a pleasant tone.

"What do you mean?"

"Kathy. I'm sure he'll like her too."

The usual crease between Wally's eyebrows tightened, but he said nothing. For a moment, they remained silent until Kuki spoke again.

"You know, you don't treat her like a girlfriend."

"Who?"

"Kathy, silly."

"Oh."

"If anything, you treat her like she's a pest."

"I'd be a lot nicer if she didn't act like one."

Kuki frowned at him. "That's not a nice thing to say!"

"I'm just joking..."

Again, another beat, then Kuki continued.

"Joking aside," She said begrudgingly. She had no idea why she was saying the things she was saying. "You should try to be a little nicer to her. It would be nice if you complimented her, at least."

"How do you expect me to do that when your own boyfriend won't even do that for you?"

Kuki coiled at his words. From the look on his face, he seemed about ready to add salt to the wound, but to her surprise, he retreated.

"Sorry..." He said quietly. "He just seems a little bit self-obsessed, that's all."

Kuki laughed. "Have you been taking etiquette lessons from Nigel?"

"I'd be lying if I said he didn't sit me down for a few..."

Kuki smiled quietly as she pictured it: Wally slumped back with his arms crossed as Nigel peered at him sternly over the top of his glasses.

"Have you even kissed him yet?" Wally's voice interrupted her thoughts.

Kuki turned her head towards him, startled by his question. It wasn't very often that she could read his expression, but in this case, he definitely looked like he regretted asking.

"Who am I kidding, of course you have. You guys have been dating for a few weeks now..."

Kuki squirmed. "Actually, I haven't kissed him..."

He glanced sideways at her. "You've been dating him for three weeks, and you haven't kissed him?"

"No... I don't know why, though. It just feels like there's never a good time. Not that he doesn't try though. He tries... A lot, actually..."

Kuki heard a low snap and looked over to find Wally cracking his neck. Though she couldn't prove it, experience convinced her that it was his natural reaction to hearing things that peeved him. It was as if he literally wanted to fight what he heard.

"What about you...?" She asked hesitantly. "You've kissed Kathy, right...?"

"I would if she stops foaming at the mouth like an angry mutt."

Kuki punched his shoulder. "That's not nice!"

He laughed as he rubbed the spot where she hit him, even though she knew that her punch must have felt like nothing to him.

Laughter riddled the silence as they walked on, making the air between them a little lighter. As much as she disliked the callousness of his joke, Kuki couldn't help but smile at the sound of his laughter. It was the first time she heard him laugh in weeks.

* * *

They didn't talk again until they reached an intersection by the park. It was the halfway point between their houses, which stood in completely opposite directions. It was yet another thing that divided them into completely opposite sides.

They lingered at the park gate for a moment.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around," She said.

"You're going home?"

"I don't know, actually..."

She turned to the park and admired the clear blue sky stretching out above it. It was a beautiful day. It seemed criminal not to enjoy it.

"I think I might hang out here for a bit "

"By yourself?"

"I guess so."

Wally looked towards the park as well, his green eyes pensive. She stared at him discreetly, wondering what might be going on behind his blank expression.

"I think I'll stay, too," He said. "If you don't mind, that is..."

Kuki gulped quietly. Being alone together as they walked towards the same direction made sense, but to actually spend time together?

"You don't want me here?" He prodded, his green eyes betraying a hint of injury.

"No, of course not!" Kuki said immediately. "I mean, yes, I want you here. Uh, I mean..."

She punched herself internally as she gathered the right words. She sighed.

"I don't mind if you stay. I don't mind at all..."

* * *

They walked along the stone paths that led all over the park, stopping every now and then to admire the places that riddled their childhood. There was the tree from which Wally fell and broke his arm when he was eight years old - coincidentally the same tree under which Kuki used to hold tea parties for her Rainbow Monkeys, the playground where they and their friends spent countless Sundays playing tag, the lake where they used to swim and ride their floats... There was even a picnic table with signature stains - a casualty from a very intense food fight that took place one Saturday afternoon when they were all ten years old.

By the time they reached the other side of the park, Kuki's feet were so sore that she had to sit on a bench and rest. Wally joined her - slumped back, arms crossed, and looking surly as usual.

Once again, silence dominated the space between them. Kuki was just about to attempt a joke that Hoagie told her recently when Wally suddenly broke the silence.

"What do you see in Wallace?"

"Sorry?"

"Wallace. What do you see in him?"

Wally was gazing at her so steadily that she had to look away. "Um, I guess it's..." She tried to finish her sentence but she couldn't. What _does_ she see in him?

Wally let out a frustrated sigh. "Look," He said, irritated. "You're probably more likely to listen if this were coming from Nigel, Abby, or Hoagie, but I'll be very pissed with myself if I don't say this at least once." He eyed her sternly. "You boyfriend is a jerk."

Kuki blinked at him, then almost smiled. She couldn't help but think back to the argument they had just a few weeks ago.

"I know what you're thinking," He said defensively. "But if you think _I'm_ a jerk, he's worse. I look like a saint next to him!"

She smiled in concession, but afterwards, she shrugged. "He's not as bad as he seems..."

"Not bad? Really?" He was looking at her more pointedly now. "REALLY?"

"Yes, Wally. Really." There was a firmness in her tone at the last words. She was starting to get irritated. It was bad enough that she had to endure Abby's glaring whenever Wallace was around.

Wally crossed his arms and fumed. For a moment, it seemed like he had given up. That was until his eyes landed on a water fountain nearby, and suddenly an idea seemed to pop inside his head. His lips stretched into a mischievous smile.

"Not as bad as he seems, huh?" He said to her. "Watch this."

Kuki watched as he got up, jogged over to the fountain, then bent over. For a moment it looked like he was just drinking, but Kuki soon realized that his arms were moving around too much for it. When he turned back to her, she broke into laughter. Wally had poured water all over his hair and combed it down into Wallace's perfect, preppy hairstyle.

"Uh, babe, do you wanna hear about my last swim meet?" He said, copying Wallace's voice to a perfect tee. "Uh, babe, can you hold up this mirror in front of me while I flex? Uh, babe, can you wear a bikini so I can brag to my friends about how hot you are?"

"That's not funny!" Kuki roared at him.

"Then why are you laughing?"

"Because you sound just like him!"

"Exactly. See what you got yourself into?"

Kuki got up from the bench and shot him with her own mischievous grin. "Oh yeah? Well your girl isn't exactly a ray of sunshine either, mister."

She planted her firsts on her sides, sported her best pout, and started trembling on purpose as if she were a tea kettle filled with boiling water. She searched her voice for a perfect balance of cute and crazy.

"Wallykins, if you do NOT get me flowers and a box of chocolates for our next date, I will WRAP MY ARMS around your neck SO HARD that you WON'T BE ABLE TO BREATHE!"

"Don't do that!" He bawled at her in horror. "That's not funny! You really do sound like her!"

Kuki laughed so hard that she had to bend over to keep herself from falling. The horrified frown on Wally's face didn't help either.

"Alright, joke time is over," She said as her laughter subsided. "Put your hair back the way it was."

"Nah," He said stubbornly, combing his hair down for extra measure. "I think I'm going to keep it. I could use more narcissism in my life."

"Wally, stop! You look like Wallace!"

"Good," He grinned at her. "You must find me attractive then."

"Put your hair back!

"No!"

Kuki ran over and tried to ruffle his hair back to its tousled state, but he laughingly dodged every attempt. In the spur of the moment, she jumped on him and knocked him down to the ground. They both laughed as she succeeded, ruffling his hair until it reverted back to its usual state.

The laughter faded when they both realized she was on top of him. More so when they realized how close their faces were from each other's. Their eyes connected for a moment until Kuki cleared her throat and moved away from him.

"Sorry..." She said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear out of discomfort.

"It's no big deal," He said flatly as he sat up.

They sat quietly for a while. Kuki looked everywhere else to avoid his eyes, while he took a blade of grass and started absentmindedly tearing it to pieces. Eventually, his mind drew towards a group of kids nearby, and for a few minutes, he watched as they threw a football back and forth. Another idea popped into his head.

"Wait here," he said to her.

Kuki watched as he got up and ran over to the kids. After talking to them for a few minutes, he returned with the football in his hands.

"They're taking a break," He told her. "They said we could borrow the ball for a while "

"What for?"

"So we can play ball. Duh."

Kuki looked at him incredulously. "Play ball? With me? I can't even throw a football past two feet!"

Wally's eyebrows drew together. "That's what Wallace said..."

The disappointment on his face was so deep that it made Kuki feel ashamed. He was right. Wallace _did_ say that about her. She looked at him shamefully, almost as if apologizing for accidentally defending Wallace.

"Alright then, come on," He said to her. "Get up."

Kuki got up and dusted off the grass from her pants.

"Okay, now stand right here."

She walked over to where he pointed.

"Alright, so here's what you do..."

Kuki's heartbeat rose as he walked behind her and held the ball in front of her. His shoulders curled in so closely that they sheltered hers.

"...take the ball..."

He took her hands and brought them up to the ball.

"...line your fingers with the stitches on the sides, with your index finger pointing towards the tip..."

His fingers adjusted hers as he spoke.

"...now tighten your grip on the ball..."

Kuki's insides swooned. His palms were warm as they pressed against her hands.

"...Good."

He stepped a few feet away from her and waved for one of the kids to come over. A little boy ran over to a spot about twenty feet in front of them.

"Alright, now keep your hand the way it is and thrust the ball into the air as hard as you can."

Kuki looked at him nervously.

"You can do it."

Kuki turned to look at the boy and took a deep breath. Then, keeping Wally's directions in mind, she threw the ball.

The football flew through the air a little awkwardly, but she was surprised to see it travel much farther than she expected. The little boy had to run up a few steps to make up for the lost distance and caught the ball easily, but afterwards he flashed a thumbs-up at her. Kuki smiled in delight.

Wally appeared next to her with his hands on his hips, tracing the direction of her throw with his eyes. "My measuring skills might not be as accurate as Hoagie's, but I'm pretty sure that's way more than two feet."

Kuki turned to him, stunned yet softened by the warmth in his tone. He turned to her and smiled.

"Not bad for a first try."

Kuki was so affected by his expression that she turned away out of a suddenly strong desire to hide her smile. By the time she gathered herself, there was only one thing she could say to him.

"Can you show me again?"

* * *

The sun was setting by the time they left the park. Feathery pink clouds trailed across the sky, mingling with a backdrop of blue, purple, and orange.

Kuki shivered and hugged her body against the dropping temperature. It was unusually cold for a summer night, but seeing that everyone around - including Wally - had light sweaters on, she realized she must not have paid enough attention to the weather forecast.

"You cold?" He said to her.

"Yeah. I didn't know the weather was going to be like this today."

She turned to him as she spoke but was surprised to find herself talking to an empty spot beside her. When she turned around, she saw him standing a few feet back, taking off his sweatshirt.

"Wally, what are you- Huh? HEY!"

She barely had a chance to question him when he walked over and wordlessly pulled the sweatshirt down her torso. His sweatshirt was so big against her small frame that it took her a while just to find her way through the sleeves and the hood. After a few seconds, she finally she managed to pull her head through, and when she lifted the hood from her eyes, the first thing she saw was his green eyes staring softly at her.

Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of it. She has never seen him look at her that way before.

As if sensing what she saw, Wally's hand shot forward and pulled the hood down her face.

"Hey!" She said.

His laughter sounded in her ears, and by the time she pulled the hood back, he was already a few feet down the sidewalk, walking away from her.

"Where are you going? Your house is this way!"

"I'm walking you home, genius."

Kuki placed a hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow at him. "You and I have been friends since we were kids and not once have you _ever_ offered to walk me home."

"That's because you were always mad at me," Wally laughed. "You better catch up before I change my mind!"

* * *

The sun had long gone beneath the horizon by the time they reached her doorstep. Illuminated only by the soft lights from the porch and the front yard, Kuki turned to look at Wally as he lingered at the bottom steps. The silence hung between them for a minute, but Kuki didn't spend it combing her brain for something to say. Unlike earlier, there was no longer an awkwardness to the silence. In fact, there was a certain sweetness to it. She almost wished she lived further down the street if it meant they could have walked for a little longer.

"Oh!" she said as she remembered that she had his sweatshirt on. She started pulling it over her head.

"Keep it," He said decidedly. "Just give it back to me whenever."

A tender smile spread across Kuki's lips.

"What are you smiling for?" He asked.

"Nothing. It's just that... I never noticed..."

"Never noticed what?"

Kuki recalled how he opened the door for her at the restaurant. And now, between wearing a sweatshirt that he forcibly put on her to keep her warm and seeing him standing in her front yard after walking her home, she felt the need to say it.

"I never noticed you were such a gentleman."

Wally looked down and rubbed the back of his neck as he thought of what she said. "I suppose it was my fault. I made it hard for you to see that..."

He lifted his eyes back up and look at her sincerely.

"I'm sorry I was such a jerk..."

Kuki was stunned at first, then her expression melted into softness as a thought consumed her: what a great guy. What a _really_ great guy. It almost hurt to realize it.

"Are you going to see Kathy now?" She found herself asking, though she didn't know why.

He seemed puzzled, almost irritated, at the sudden change of topic.

"No, it's pretty late," He replied flatly. "I'll go see her tomorrow."

Kuki thought of the way Kathy spoke to him earlier that day, as well how casually he seemed to dismiss the topic of her. She almost couldn't believe what she was about to say.

"Wally, you shouldn't date someone if you're not really serious about them. They deserve better than that. YOU deserve better than that."

Wally stared at her and let her words hang in the air for a moment. What he said next, she didn't anticipate.

"Neither should you."

His tone was so loaded with meaning that it stunned her.

"I'll see you around," He said quietly before turning around and disappearing into the night, leaving her to wonder what else he might have meant.


	6. One Down, One More to Go

"WHAT?!"

People from surrounding tables stopped and turned their heads to watch as Wallace's mouth fell open and his eyes grew large with disbelief.

"YOU'RE BREAKING UP WITH ME?!"

"Wallace, could you _please_ keep your voice down?" Kuki whispered sharply, "You're making a scene!"

Wallace frowned at the people around them then leaned towards Kuki, scowling. "What do you _mean_ you're breaking up with me?!"

Kuki closed her eyes and sighed as she gathered the right words.

"Look," She said tiredly. "I just feel like you and I are a little too different and that it would be best if we break things off and explore other options."

"But the last four weeks have been perfect!" He argued, almost desperately. "Things were going so well! We were talking about my swim career, you were gonna watch me train, you were gonna come to my next swim meet…"

Kuki rubbed her forehead to ease a growing headache. The more Wallace spoke, the harder it was not to see him for the pompous, self-obsessed narcissist that he was.

"That's the thing, Wallace. I'm not even interested in those things. You were just so busy thinking of yourself that you must have thought I shared the same goals."

"That's not true!"

"Yeah? Then name one thing about me that doesn't have anything to do with you and your swimming."

Wallace's mouth opened quickly as if ready to spit out a surefire answer, but nothing came. Kuki could see in his eyes that he was searching hard, but in the end, it was to no avail.

"You see? That's my point."

Wallace closed his mouth and sulked in defeat.

"I have nothing against you and your passion," Kuki added kindly. "I just think you need to find someone who would care for it as much as you do." _In other words, find someone who's as obsessed with you as you are with yourself_, Kuki kind of wanted to add, but she withheld it.

Wallace sat fuming for a few moments. Then, as if tugging at the last strands of his ego, he spoke scathingly. "Do you have _any_ idea how many girls are after me?"

Kuki felt the last of her sympathy dissolve. It was official. He really is a self-obsessed jerk like everyone said. She wanted to say something equally scathing but she no longer had it in her to feel anything for him.

"I guess that's a good thing," She said dismissively, almost humorously. "That means you won't have a hard time finding a new girlfriend, right?"

Wallace drew back, his face switching from a sulky pout to a somewhat comical confusion. Kuki then realized that her attempt at humor might have been received as patronizing.

"We could still be friends," She offered clumsily with an unintentional shrug.

"Forget it!" Wallace spat as he got up to leave. "And to think I was gonna save you a spot at my next swim meet!"

Scowling at her once more, he stormed out of the restaurant, leaving a trail of on-lookers behind him.

Kuki rested her chin on her hand and looked outside the window, watching as Wallace angrily stomped down the street. Right before disappearing from view, he kicked a bed of flowers by the curb. Kuki briefly wondered if she herself would soon feel the need to kick something. She even waited. But in the end, nothing came. Nothing but relief that the relationship was over.

* * *

The walk home was a somewhat strange experience. Having been accompanied by Wallace's endless chatter for the last four weeks, Kuki had forgotten what it was like to be alone. She wanted to enjoy the solitude, but beneath her desire to enjoy it came a subtle, gnawing loneliness from realizing that she was by herself again. It wasn't enough to make her regret the breakup - not even close - but it was enough to make her long for company.

She paused as she suddenly felt a desperate longing to be with her friends. She wanted to hug Nigel's arm and feel the comfort of his warm, brotherly presence. She wanted to squeeze Hoagie's cheeks, to laugh at his jokes, to be enlivened by his cheery energy. She wanted to hear Abby's voice, to listen to her insights, to be scolded by her for making stupid, rash decisions like dating Wallace.

Kuki ached to turn around and head towards the clubhouse, but she remembered that Wally would probably be there. And wherever Wally was, Kathy was bound to be there too.

Her heart stung at the thought of Kathy's arms constantly wrapped around him - a sight she endured much more often than she expected during the last week. Having seen how quickly Wally became tolerant of Kathy, she wondered now if she only imagined the way he looked at her at the park. If she were to be honest with herself, that probably had a lot more to do with breaking up with Wallace than Wallace's own narcissism.

_Go home_, she told herself. And for a moment, it felt like the right decision until something like a premonition struck her. She could picture it clearly: how the rest of the day would look. She would be laying in bed, drowning in her thoughts as she stared at Wally's sweatshirt hanging off her bathroom door, too embarrassed to admit even to herself that she had been wearing it almost every night - so much that Wally's scent had worn off. (She never would've guessed that Wally would be the type of guy who actually used men's products, but as it was, a certain breezy, sweet fragrance greeted her nose when she first donned the sweatshirt. She could only assume that it was another one of Nigel's influences.)

Her dilemma fazed her once more: stay home alone and drown in her own thoughts or go to the clubhouse on the off-chance of being surrounded by friends?

Taking a deep breath and praying that everyone except for Wally would be there, she turned around and headed towards the clubhouse.

* * *

Her gamble yielded poor results.

The first thing she saw as soon as she opened the door was the back of two heads huddled together at the couch - one with a mane of red curls and the other a mop of messy, blonde hair. The sight of it made her heart sink, and had it not been for Hoagie sitting at the table building a house of cards, she would have turned around and left.

She walked over to the table and sat in a chair.

"Hi, Hoagie."

"Hey, Kuki."

Wally's head turned at the sound of her name, and their eyes met immediately. Feeling oddly shy, Kuki could only greet him with a subtle wave. He returned the gesture, and when he did, Kathy's head lifted slightly with his arm. Kuki winced inside, having realized how snugly Kathy was leaning against him. It was a painful contrast to what she felt as she studied the look on Wally's face, his eyes lingering on her a little longer, making her wonder if the day they spent at the park was as fresh in his mind as it was in hers.

It was all interrupted when Kathy lifted her head and looked at him. "Something wrong, Wallykins?"

Wally's eyes darted from Kuki to her, and the look in his eyes just moments ago faded instantly. "No," He told her flatly before turning back to the TV.

Suspicious, Kathy turned her head to look behind them, and upon seeing Kuki, a catty scowl carved into her face. Kuki tried to mediate it with a friendly wave, but she was only met with a deeper scowl before Kathy turned away and nestled her head deeper into Wally's neck.

Kuki's eyes flicked away from the sight of it, turning towards Hoagie instead.

"Where's Nigel and Abby?" She asked him.

"Nigel's out fishing with his dad and Abby is..." Hoagie looked at Kathy for a moment then turned back to his house of cards. "...avoiding frustrations."

Kuki smiled. For the last week, Abby had been _hell_ to deal with. It was bad enough that Wallace's obnoxious attitude drew out her deepest glares, but the addition of Kathy practically made her fingers ache to punch somebody. Had it not been for Nigel and Hoagie calming her down behind the scenes, she would have unleashed her wrath on the whole clubhouse. It was rather miraculous that she managed to reduce it to silent scowls. That, or she just avoided going to the clubhouse altogether.

"Is Abby still giving Wally a hard time?" Kuki asked Hoagie, talking just low enough so that the couple at the couch couldn't hear.

"Oh, _constantly_," Hoagie replied, laughing slightly. "Why do you think Wally has been so moody?"

Kuki glanced at the back of Wally's head. It was true. His childlike, Abby-yelled-at-me pout had been his neutral face for the last few days.

"Then again," Hoagie added in an even quieter whisper, "If you ask me, I can't figure out what's worse - dealing with Abby's wrath or being Kathy's boyfriend."

Kuki snorted so loudly that Kathy sprung up at the couch. "EXCUSE ME," She said moodily, "Wallykins and I are trying to watch TV. Could you PLEASE keep it down?"

Hoagie stared at Kathy with what appeared to be a vacant expression, but Kuki knew him too well and could see the subtle layer of sarcasm dancing in corners of his mouth. "Sooooorry Kathyyyy," He sang as if he were a guilty child.

Kathy wrinkled her nose at him then, with eyes rolling, she turned back to the TV.

Hoagie flashed Kuki with his cheesiest, toothiest, most playful grin, and it made Kuki snicker, though she did it quietly so as to avoid drawing Kathy's attention again. Suddenly a squishy ball smacked the side of his head, letting out a squeak as it bounced off of him. They turned to the couch where Wally was now glaring directly at him, his eyes radiating his threats.

Hoagie responded by feigning innocence and shrugged his shoulders animatedly, to which Wally shook his head before turning back to the TV.

Hoagie turned back to Kuki and winked at her. By then, she was laughing so hard that it took every fiber of her being to keep quiet.

* * *

"It's strange, isn't it?" Kuki said to Hoagie later on.

"What is?"

"How Wally became so tolerant of her out of nowhere."

Hoagie lifted his hat and and scratched his head as they both studied the couple on the couch. Kathy was idly twirling a finger through Wally's hair as they watched TV. Just a week ago, any attempt like that would have been unimaginable.

"Yeah, it's pretty strange," Hoagie said as he put his hat back on. "Then again, you shouldn't be so surprised. You were the one who told her to be nicer to her."

Kuki responded to him with a puzzled stare.

"Well, you did, didn't you? When you guys were at the park?"

She blushed. "He told you about that?"

"Yeah," Hoagie said as a teasing smile danced slightly in the corner of his lips. "Wally tells me a lot of things."

Kuki slouched. She couldn't imagine a world where Wally openly offered information.

"I gotta hand it to ya, Kuki. That's pretty cool of you to tell him that. He wouldn't have gone so out of his way to put up with her if you hadn't."

Kuki frowned as if she had eaten something unpleasant. "Yeah..." She said quietly, her eyes glossing over sadly. "I guess this is my fault..."

She didn't notice it, but Hoagie was studying her carefully as he added another level to his pyramid of cards. His mouth tilted sympathetically at the look on her face. "Let's talk about something else!" He said suddenly with an added layer of cheeriness. "How are you and Wallace?"

Kuki looked up at him and wondered whether this new topic would cheer her up or just make her sadder. "We broke up."

The pyramid of cards collapsed and spilled all over the table and floor, revealing a shocked, wide-eyed Hoagie behind it. "...Are you serious?" He asked.

She nodded.

A knot formed between Hoagie's brows, and his baby blue eyes glossed over as if he were calculating a math problem. Absently, he lifted his hat and scratched through his mousy brown hair, staring at the back of Wally's head all the while. "So why did you guys break up?" He asked as he began collecting the cards.

Kuki sighed. "It felt like it was going nowhere. We were too different. Plus he was a little..."

She looked at Hoagie as she searched for the right word to say; he smiled at her mischievously as he waited.

"...Over-bearing?" She smirked, asking for his approval.

His lips stretched into a wider grin. "I would have been more creative than that."

Kuki giggled.

"Welp, I'm glad you made that decision," He continued as he gathered the cards into a neat pile. "I can't say I'm not relieved."

"You really didn't like him, did you?"

"Nah, of course not. The guy was a nasty jerk. I only put up with him because you were dating him. We all did. Anyway, it doesn't matter now. I'm just glad it's over. I wasn't sure how much more of Wally I could have dealt with."

Kuki watched quietly as Hoagie shuffled the cards, then her thoughts dialed back to what he just said. "What does Wally have to do with this?" She said curiously.

The sound of the deck shuffling stopped as Hoagie froze. "Uh… Did I say Wally? I meant Wallace."

"No, you said Wally."

Hoagie's baby blue eyes widened as his face stiffened into a clumsy smile. "You sure? I'm pretty sure I said Wallace."

The thing about Hoagie was that he's a terrible liar, and Kuki smiled now as she saw him struggling. She leaned over the desk and narrowed her eyes at him threateningly. "Hoagie, if you don't tell me what you're hiding, I'm going to squeeze your cheeks so hard your baby fat will dissolve."

Hoagie sighed in defeat. "Look, I'm not gonna tell you everything I know. It's not my place, and I hope you're going to respect that…" He, for once, looked so serious that Kuki could only nod respectfully. He then started twirling a card around his fingers, calculating as he spoke. "All I'm gonna tell you is that Wally hated him more than the rest of us did."

"Why?"

He stroked his chin, his eyebrows wrinkling together as if he were solving a complicated math problem. "He thought you deserved better. That's all I'm gonna say."

Kuki studied him carefully, now regretting her promise not to interrogate him. There was something hidden in his expression, something that told her that there was much more he knew.

"He was just trying to be a good friend, that's all," he said conclusively. From the way he spoke, Kuki could tell that it was the last bit of information he would afford her.

Her shoulders sank as she leaned sadly on the table. "Right… A good friend…"

She cast her eyes down as she thought of the way Wally looked at her a week ago._ Is that how a friend looks at you?_

Her thoughts were interrupted when the door opened, and in came Abby. The first people she set her eyes on were Wally and Kathy, and upon seeing them, her face wrinkled as if there was a foul smell in the place. Kathy briefly looked to see who the new arrival was, and after realizing that it was Abby, she turned her nose up and turned back to the TV. Wally, on the other hand, suddenly looked like child who got caught breaking a rule. He shifted uncomfortably and averted his eyes away from Abby as if he were a child cowering away from an angry parent.

Abby walked over to the table and took a seat.

"Hey, stranger," Hoagie said to her.

"I was hoping today would be a good day, but I guess not," She grunted, her eyes burning holes through the back of Kathy's head.

"Oh cheer up, Kuki has good news for you."

"Try me."

Kuki smiled with slight embarrassment at the weight of Hoagie's encouraging smile and Abby's expectant stare. "Wallace and I broke up," she said bashfully.

As if a wind blew through her and washed away every trace of irritation in her being, Abby drew a sharp breath and raised her arms towards the roof. "Thank GOD!"

No sooner than Kuki and Hoagie had broken into laughter did Kathy's shrill little voice pierce into their circle. "EXCUSE ME!" She screeched. "I'm going to ask nicely AGAIN - could you PLEASE keep it down?"

"Kathy, relax. It's not a big deal," Wally said tiredly in the background.

Abby stared Kathy down, looking as if she was just about ready to throw the table at her.

"Deep breaths, Abby..." Hoagie said from the corner of his mouth. "Deep breaths..."

Taking his advice, Abby took in a breath so sharp that her chest raised and her lips tightened. "We're sorry, Kathy," She said tensely through a forced smile. "We'll keep it down for you lovebirds."

After Kathy flipped her hair and turned back to the TV, Hoagie and Kuki snickered quietly as Abby turned back to them. Her smile was growing so wide and maniacal that she started looking like an escapee from a horror movie asylum.

"If she says one more thing to me, I'm gonna grab a strand of her adorable little curls and wrap it around her neck," She said through clenched teeth.

"You're doing so well, Abby," Hoagie snickered at her. He was laughing so hard at this point that his eyes started watering. "I'm so proud of you."

Abby's hand shot towards him and pinched him on the side.

"OW! GEEZ, ABBY!"

"THAT'S IT!" Kathy said as she stood from the couch and planted her hands on her sides.

"Kathy, sit down!" Wally whined at her, but it was too late.

"I have been asking REALLY NICELY, but OBVIOUSLY I'm the only one around here who has manners! I'm just gonna have to say it! You guys are being very, very, VERY RUDE!"

The whole room froze, save for the show playing on the TV. At this point, Kuki and Hoagie didn't know whether to laugh or to tremble in fear. The stare-down between Kathy and Abby was so tense that they were almost sure someone was going to end up at the hospital within the next hour.

Still smiling like a maniac, Abby stood up and casually grabbed Hoagie and Kuki by the hand.

"You know what?" She said in a tone so pleasant that it resembled a villain in a slasher movie. "You are SO right, Kathy. We are SO rude. How about we go to the Cheezaria so that you guys can spend some quality time together?"

"You guys are going to the Cheezaria?" Wally said, perking up.

"Oh yes we are, but YOU, Wally?" Abby stared pointedly at him. Her smile was wide but her eyes were screaming bloody murder. "You're gonna stay riiiiiiiight here. With your GIRLFRIEND."

Wally looked so sulky that Kuki had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. He looked like a child being sentenced to his room without dessert.

"You two love birds enjoy!" Hoagie called after them as Abby dragged him and Kuki out of the clubhouse.

* * *

"You should have seen the way you looked at her!" Hoagie said to Abby later on at the Cheezaria. "You looked like you were about to throw the table at her!"

"I should have!" Abby replied gaily. "If I hear the word 'Wallykins' one more time, I just might throw him at her!"

Kuki giggled along, but a small layer of guilt suddenly possessed her. "Wasn't it a little mean to leave Wally back there, though?"

"NO!" Abby and Hoagie said simultaneously, then they laughed at the unexpected unison.

"Don't worry too much, Kuki," Hoagie said. "We're just messing with him."

"Besides," Abby added in a far less sympathetic tone. "He's not dumb. He can't possibly expect us to make things easy for him if he's going to bring in a person like that."

"She can't be that bad…" Kuki mumbled.

"Not that bad? SHE'S A BRAT."

"Well, there must be something nice about her. Otherwise Wally wouldn't be dating her, right?"

"Oh please," Hoagie said as he took a sip of his soda. "He only started dating her because he didn't think he had a chance with y-"

There was a loud bump and the table shook, followed by a painful grunt from Hoagie.

"Hoagie, are you okay?" Kuki asked him.

"Argh... Yes..." Hoagie said, scowling at Abby as she stared him down meaningfully. "I just choked on some soda, that's all..."

Ignoring the strange air of secrecy that danced between Abby and Hoagie, Kuki placed her elbow against the table and rested her chin in her hands.

"Do you think it would matter to Wally if he found out..?" She asked them after some time.

"Found out about what?" Hoagie asked.

"Me and Wallace…"

Abby and Hoagie looked at each other meaningfully, though Kuki didn't seem to notice.

"Maybe," Abby said blankly. "It's Wally. Who knows what he could be thinking?"


	7. The Birth of a Distraction

_Is this what being single is? _Kuki thought to herself a few days later as she stared out the window of a coffee shop. _I don't remember it being this boring..._

She rested her chin against her hand and drummed her fingers against her cheek as she racked her brain for her next activity. So far, she had been to the mall, the park, the library... The pool was out of the question due to the risk of seeing Wallace, and the Cheezaria daunted her with the thought of dining alone. She knotted her eyebrows, straining as she thought harder. There had to be _somewhere_ should could go, _something_ she could do. There was still half the day left, and she'll be damned if she spends the rest of it sitting at home.

The thought of the clubhouse crept from the back of her mind, but she pushed it away immediately. The clubhouse was off limits. It had been for a few days now, ever since she realized that she was growing more and more incapable of being around Kathy. Unlike Abby, however, her desire for avoidance wasn't based on a dislike for the shrill voice and the nasty attitude. It was something else... Something she wasn't quite ready to admit.

"I'm such a baby..." She whispered to herself scornfully. "I can't believe I'm running away like this. It's just a stupid crush."

_Crush_. The word lingered in her mind for a bit. She was able to admit to something after all.

For a moment, she considered giving in and heading for the clubhouse, but the image of Kathy's arms around Wally's neck flashed in her head. It made her wince, and her desire to stay away doubled down on her.

"Who cares about the clubhouse?" She told herself adamantly. "I can have more fun by myself."

Filled with renewed determination, she took another sip of her green tea and combed her mind for more ideas. No sooner than the green tea traveled down her throat did she slump further into her chair, completely devoid of ideas. She was just about to surrender to the idea of wasting her day at home when a small glimmer of hope caught the corner of her eye. She looked towards a bookstore window across the street and narrowed her eyes as she studied the small patch of colors shimmering in the sunlight. Her spirits lifted. There was no mistaking it - she was looking at RAINBOW MONKEYS.

She left the coffee shop and rushed over to the bookstore window, pressing her hands against the glass as she inspected the item. There they were - her childhood favorites smiling invitingly at her from the glossy cover of a book on display. _Bringing Love Wherever They Go: An Analysis of the Cultural Impact of Rainbow Monkeys,_ the title read. It was a little too academic for her taste, but a small badge on the cover promised fan art, behind-the-scenes photos, and never-before-seen comic strips. In other words, it was a nostalgic trip waiting to happen.

It was decided. She was to obtain this book and happily spend the rest of the day at home, reading. She opened the door to the store and walked in.

* * *

Her fingers were mere inches away from the book when another hand bumped into hers.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" She gasped as she snatched her hand back.

"No, no - _I'm _sorry," said the owner of the other hand. "I didn't see you there."

Kuki looked up to offer her own counter-apology, but she was suddenly rendered speechless upon looking at the boy who stood before her. He had the _kindest_ green eyes she had ever seen in her life, staring back at her from behind a pair of dark-rimmed glasses and curtained by long, brown hair.

"Were you reaching for this?" He asked as he held up the copy of the Rainbow Monkeys book. He had a sort of natural smile, and Kuki didn't need to see the full length of it to imagine how adorable it was.

"Yes I was, actually," She answered shyly as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "The store owner said it was their last copy."

"Yeah, he told me the same thing."

The boy studied the book for a moment, turning it over to look at the front and back cover.

"I suppose I should do the kind thing and let you have it," He said musingly. "It wouldn't be very Rainbow Monkey of me if I were to deprive someone of a good book."

Kuki's mouth pulled itself into a smile. He was cute _and _he seemed nice. Suddenly, another realization came to her, and her face rearranged itself into a curious expression.

"Are you okay?" He asked, tilting his head slightly.

Kuki blinked as she looked back and forth between the boy and the book in his hand. "Are you sure you grabbed the right book...?"

The boy held it up and read it out loud. "_Bringing Love Wherever They Go: An Analysis of the Cultural Impact of Rainbow Monkeys _\- yup, I'm pretty sure. Why?"

Kuki opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Instead, her gaping mouth and knotted brows did the talking for her.

"Let me guess," The boy said, seemingly amused. "You've never seen a guy who likes Rainbow Monkeys?"

Kuki drew back, suddenly feeling an overwhelming sense of shame. He sounded so nice that it was impossible not to feel guilty for judging him. "I'm sorry... You must find me really judgemental. It's just that all my guy friends grew out of their interest years ago. And one of them has always hated it." Her lips stretched into a frown as Wally momentarily flashed in her mind.

The boy laughed. "If it makes you feel better, I have three sisters who are super-fans, so I grew up with it. Does that help?"

It didn't. If anything, it made Kuki feel even guiltier as she realized that she now obligated him to use his siblings for justification.

"Besides," he continued. "There's more to Rainbow Monkeys than people give it credit for. I personally feel like they do wonders for teaching kids about complex issues. They changed the game when they added characters like Pretty-in-Punk Rainbow Monkey. Kids need characters like that to know that it's okay to be different."

Kuki was just over-analyzing the adorable way he adjusted his glasses while he spoke when the words that came out of his mouth sank in. The synapses in her brain ignited, blasting her with sudden excitement.

"CHARACTER COMPLEXITY!" She blurted.

The boy looked at her, his gentle eyes looking slightly puzzled.

"I tell my friends about that all the time, and they all thought I was crazy!" She continued, not realizing that she was flailing her hands around. "I kept explaining to them over and over that character complexity was essential to the show because it teaches kids that they don't have to be one-dimensional!"

The boy smiled as he made a sound somewhere between a scoff and amusement.

"FURTHERMORE," Kuki added, her words flowing freely out of her now. "Pretty-in-Punk Rainbow Monkey isn't just a stupid, colorful, fictional monkey - she's a very complex character that shows kids that they can be more than one thing, that they can be super cute _and _be super tough, and that they can be very sensitive _and_ super cool! That's why I keep telling people that it's not just a stupid kid's show. It's not! I swear, IT'S NOT!"

A brief silence followed, filled only with the sound of Kuki breathing heavily after finishing her tangent. She suddenly grew embarrassed when she realized what a maniac she must have looked as her hands were still excitedly suspended in mid-air. To her surprise, however, the boy's lips spread into a smile. She blushed as she realized that she had predicted correctly - his smile _is _as cute as she imagined.

"Huh... Character duality..." He mused as he gazed at her. "That's a really good way of saying it..."

His smile lingered on her for a little longer, and something clicked inside her - something that came in the form of a heartbeat and her cheeks aching to smile. She looked away from him, suddenly feeling the weight of his stare.

"Anyway..." She said shyly. "You should take the book. You got to it first."

The boy blinked and shook his head as if he had just gotten out of a trance. "Right, the book... Thanks. I appreciate it, uh..."

"Kuki."

"Kuki. Right. Thanks, Kuki."

"You're welcome, uh..."

"Walter."

"Right! Walter... You're welcome, Walter..."

They both stood there, shifting awkwardly as they endlessly tangoed their way through courtesies. When it came to the point that there was nothing else to say, Walter motioned himself towards the register only to stop, seemingly rooted to the spot. Kuki watched him linger, equally unable to step away.

"Listen, uh..." He said shyly. "I hope this isn't very forward of me, but... Can I buy you a cup of coffee? It's the least I can do since you're letting me have the book."

Kuki perked up at the invitation when both their eyes suddenly landed on the cup of green tea in her hand. A shadow of disappointment flashed through Walter's expression. "Oh, you were already at the coffee shop...?"

"I don't mind another cup!" She blurted.

Walter blinked at her, looking as if he couldn't believe that she was as eager as he was.

"Seriously, I love green tea!" She added determinedly. "I could probably have a few cups more, to be honest!"

Walter gave her another doubtful gaze, but soon his lips spread into a smile - the sweet, adorable one that Kuki was growing more fond of by the second. "I'd love to buy you several cups, then."

* * *

What should have been a five-minute activity ended up becoming a three-hour conversation. Walter was quite the enigma. Apart from being a Rainbow Monkey fan, he was also very fond of books, yoga, the arts, and any dish with tofu. They had so much in common that Kuki secretly joked if she had her interests written on her forehead, and he was just reading off of it.

On top of sharing the same interests, Walter had such an incredibly kind energy that Kuki couldn't help but be drawn in. By the time they left the coffee shop and moved on to a frozen yogurt place, she was so at ease with him that she didn't mind sharing a cup.

"I still can't believe you like the Rainbow Monkeys," She said as she dipped her spoon into the frozen, yogurty goodness. "It's so rare to meet a guy who gives it any thought, let alone actually owns up to it."

"I suppose it was inevitable," Walter said as he shoved a spoonful in his mouth. "The influence is all over my family. There was no escaping it."

"Oh right, your sisters..."

"It's not exactly just my sisters..."

Kuki studied him as she sensed a certain coyness in the way he spoke. "What do you mean it's not just your sisters?"

A smile danced in the corner of Walter's lips, teasing her with unrevealed information.

"What is it?" She prodded, her curiosity growing by the second.

Walter gave her another teasing smile before he spoke. "My uncle is the producer of the show."

Kuki's jaw dropped. "YOU'RE JOKING!"

"I'm not."

"Your uncle is the producer of the Rainbow Monkeys Show?!"

"Yup."

"NO WAY!"

"Do you want me to prove it? We can stop by the set next weekend, if he's not busy."

Kuki was still processing the new revelation when something else clicked. The green eyes, the brown hair, the cute smile - she'd seen it all before.

"You were that kid!" She burst, jabbing a spoonful of frozen yogurt at him. "The guest star on that episode where they saved the little boy from the forest of mischief!"

Walter almost choked on his next spoonful as he snorted from laughter. "You caught me."

"Oh my gosh, you were so cute!"

"Stop, you're embarrassing me..."

"No, seriously! I had such a big crush on you when I was ten!"

"Really...?"

"Yes! I kept telling everyone you were my boyfriend! My friend Wally teased me for ages about it!"

Walter grew quiet, a smile lingering on his lips as he twirled his spoon through the yogurt and created colorful little spirals out of it. "I didn't realize I had what it takes to be crushed on by such a pretty girl..."

Silence struck between them. Kuki was rendered speechless, completely disarmed by the smile on his face and his utter charm. As gentle as his gaze was, she felt herself blushing at the weight of it.

"Wha... What is it?" She said after some time.

He leaned forwards, staring at her intently. "Your eyes... They're such an unusual color of blue. It's almost like... They're lilac."

Kuki felt her cheeks in full flush now. "Oh, yeah... They've always been like that. My friend Wally used to tease me about it. He used to call me a space alien."

Walter smiled, seemingly unaffected. "I think they look pretty."

* * *

Kuki practically danced on her way home later that day. _Walter_. It was like a new song stuck in her head, playing over and over again, making her smile as she recalled every moment she had spent with him. It was like magic. In just a few hours, her upcoming week had gone from a dragging attempt to distract herself away from the clubhouse to an exciting agenda of visits to the Rainbow Monkey set, bookstores, coffee shops, and yogurt places - all with this new and exciting manifestation of everything she ever thought attractive. _Walter_.

She reached the park gates on the way to her house, her face still gleaming with a wide and dreamy smile, when an unfortunate turn of the head led her to spot something across that park, and suddenly it was like a bullet hit her. The smile on her face flashed into a look of horror, and she dove behind a tree to tend to the damage.

Kuki couldn't believe what was happening. Just a few seconds ago, she was happily walking home, her mind dazzling with the thought of Walter's smile. Now there she was, hiding behind a tree, clutching her tightening chest as tears seeped through her eyes.

_Tears? _She thought, unable to speak as only sobs came out of her. _But why? It's just a stupid crush!_

She took a deep breath, and once she gathered the strength to do it, she peered over the side of the tree. She watched as, across the park, Wally and Kathy strolled down one of the pathways, her arm wrapped around his as usual. Kuki couldn't quite make out their faces, but her mind filled in the rest.

_They look happy_, she thought achingly.

Just when she thought it couldn't sting any further, Wally appeared to stop and take Kathy's shoulders in his hands. He turned her to face him and held his face close to hers. A sharp pain stabbed through Kuki's chest. She'd never seen them kiss, and her insides raged for her to avoid seeing it now.

_Look away, _she screamed inside. _LOOK AWAY._

She managed to follow her own orders, turning away just in time. She wiped the tears off her cheeks aggressively.

_It's just a stupid crush_, she begged herself to believe. _A stupid crush. That's all that it is._

But it wasn't just a crush. She knew that. She knew it, regardless of what she told herself.

"It doesn't matter now..." She told herself as her sobs subsided. "He has a girlfriend... And I'm his friend. If he's happy, I should be happy..."

Taking a shaky breath, she wiped the last of the tears away and headed home, not once looking back at Wally and Kathy.


	8. A Missed Opportunity

"ALREADY?!"

Kuki winced as Abby's incredulous voice shot through every direction of the deserted clubhouse. It was the first time in two weeks that they'd seen each other. This wasn't exactly the way she pictured their reunion.

"Kuki, you just met him a week ago!"

"I know, I know… But he's really nice!"

"You think everyone's nice!"

"That's not true!"

"You thought _Wallace_ was nice."

_Oof_, Kuki thought as she slumped against the table. The only thing worse than Abby's bluntness was her cleverness. "Okay, I admit that that Wallace was a mistake. But Walter's different, I swear!"

"HOW?"

"Well, for starters, we actually have stuff in common!"

"You really expect me to believe that this guy actually likes Rainbow Monkeys?"

Kuki buried her face in her hands and sighed in defeat. There was no convincing Abby, and she knew it. Walter will just have to prove himself.

"Kuki…" Abby's voice sounded in her ears, her tone suddenly gentle. Kuki looked up to meet her eyes. She didn't look shocked or angry anymore. Instead, there was a look of genuine concern on her face. "You're not doing this for a distraction, are you?"

Kuki's eyebrows knotted together. "A distraction from what…?"

Abby searched her eyes for any recognition of the unspoken truth that currently danced between them, but she only found innocence and utter obliviousness as always. "Nevermind," she said dismissively. She pulled one of the chairs towards her and propped her feet against it, her gaze wandering off across the empty clubhouse. "Anyway, it's your life, so I can't tell you what to do. I just wish you had waited."

Kuki tilted her head innocently and raised an eyebrow at her. "Waited for what…?"

Abby's lips spread into a thin, disappointed frown. "Other options," she answered, then added pointedly, "there are other guys out there, you know."

Had Abby turned to look at Kuki, she would have seen the recognition in her eyes that she longed for earlier. Hesitantly yet hopefully, Kuki dared to prod. "Like who...?"

Abby was just about to respond when they suddenly heard the sound of a door knob jingling. The door squeaked open, then slammed shut. And just like that, Wally appeared.

* * *

Kuki was surprised by the sudden rush of emotions that surged through her when she met Wally's eyes. _Two weeks_. It had been two weeks since she'd been to the clubhouse, and the sight of him made her feel sad and excited at the same time. She watched as he stood frozen near the doorway, evidently shocked to see her there. An awkward silence slowly consumed them, which was made worse when he opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. Equally rendered speechless, Kuki could only stare back.

Eventually his eyes moved over to Abby, clinging to her presence for his escape. "Hey, Abby," He said flatly before walking over to the couch area and turning on the TV.

Kuki hardly had a chance to process his behavior when the sound of Hoagie's voice floated in through the opening door.

"So what's the plan, Wally? When are you going to ask Ku…"

His voice trailed off when he appeared in the room and saw two things: one, Wally's loaded glare, and two, the unexpected sight of Kuki sitting at the table with Abby.

"HOAGIE!" Kuki exclaimed as her mind forewent the awkwardness that had just occurred. She jumped up from her seat and ran over to give him a hug.

"Heeey, Kuki…!" Hoagie said amidst nervous chuckles. "You didn't hear what I said just now, did you…?"

"No. What did you say?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it."

"Come on, Hoagie! What did you say?"

"I said don't worry!"

"Tell me or I'll pinch you!"

"You're not really going to - ow, ow, OW!"

Hoagie backed away from Kuki, helplessly failing to dodge her pinches and giggles. Fortunately for him, Nigel walked in through the door and distracted her. He escaped to the couch at his earliest chance.

"NIGEL!" Kuki exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around him.

"Oh hey, Kuki! I didn't expect to see you here. It's been, what, two weeks?"

Kuki felt a pang of guilt as she realized how shocked everyone was to see her. She ached a little more as she realized how much she missed them.

"So what's new with you?" Nigel asked as he led her back to the table.

Kuki's eyes darted momentarily at Abby. After her little outburst earlier, it seemed wise not to deliver the news about Walter just yet. "Nothing much. What about you?"

As the conversation proceeded at the table, Kuki was unaware of yet another exchange simultaneously occurring at the couch.

"You and your stupid, big mouth!" Wally said sharply to Hoagie.

"How was I supposed to know she was gonna be here?!"

"It's the clubhouse, why wouldn't she be here?!"

"She hasn't been here for two weeks!"

"Will you keep your voice down?! She's right there!"

"Relax! She can't hear me, she's talking to Nigel!"

"You're getting louder! SHUT UP!"

"Ow! Stop hitting me!"

The sound of Hoagie crying in pain as Wally's fist punched his shoulder made Kuki turn her head. "What's going on over there?" She said called out curiously.

"Nothing, don't worry about it!" Wally said dismissively, almost rudely, without looking at her. He shot another threatening glare at Hoagie before sinking into the couch, disappearing almost completely from view but for the top of his head peering over the arch.

Kuki turned to Nigel. "Is Wally okay…?"

"Yeah," Abby added. "What's up with him?"

Nigel said nothing but only stared at the back of Wally's head quizzically. There was something in his mind, something that brought him back to several endless conversations between himself, Hoagie, and Wally. "It's now or never…" He mumbled to himself.

Kuki and Abby stared at him, confused. "What...?"

An idea popped into Nigel's head, and he turned to Kuki with a twinkle in his eye and the corners of his mouth curled up into a smile. "Hey, Kuki. There's a frozen pizza in the fridge. Can you go heat it up?"

"Me? Why me?"

"Because no one heats up frozen pizza like you can."

Kuki stared at him, not sure whether to laugh or to question him. "Um... okay? Abby, will you go with me?"

"No, no, no," Nigel cut in before Abby could respond. "Just you, Kuki."

Kuki frowned at the mischievous smirk on his face. Whatever it was he was planning, he wasn't even making an effort to lie well. "Nigel, you're creeping me out!"

Nigel feigned innocence with his eyes. "I just really want some pizza, Kuki!"

Kuki turned to Abby for help. "Nigel, what are you playing at?!" Abby said angrily.

All it took was one look from Nigel, and Kuki knew she was on her own. Abby and Nigel have always had a strange, telepathic connection, and much to Kuki's dismay, they used it now. One single, loaded gaze from Nigel, and it was almost like a switch turned on inside Abby. She turned to Kuki, suddenly as animated as Nigel. "Yeah, Kuki... Why don't you go to the kitchen and heat up that pizza?"

Kuki knew that it was futile to attempt any more questions. Once Nigel and Abby were on the same page, there was no stopping them. Suddenly eager to escape whatever conspiracy she was in the middle of, she got up and walked over to Nigel's house.

* * *

Kuki watched quietly through the oven window as the pizza slowly melted before her eyes.

_That sure was strange... _She thought to herself as she remembered the mischievous look on Nigel's face. _What as that all about...? What's he up to...?_

Her thoughts were interrupted when a series of muffled voices - hardly discernible to her - floated in from the back room.

"Do it!"

"NO!"

"Do it NOW!"

"I said NO!"

"Do it, or I'll ask her for you!"

"If you two don't let go of me, I'll...!"

"It's now or never, Wally!"

There was series of crashes in the other room before the door slammed open and Wally's tall, lanky figure got thrown in. The last thing Kuki saw was Nigel's arm pulling the door shut before she found herself alone in the room with Wally.

Wally lingered by the back door for a few seconds as if tempted to run out, but he hesitated. Eventually, he turned to Kuki.

"Hey," He said quietly.

She took a moment to reply, unsure how to greet him. "Hi…"

Wally stood awkwardly on the spot for a minute then walked over to the kitchen counter, crossed his arms, and leaned against it.

"Haven't seen you in a while," He said after some time.

"Right. I've been busy…" She lied.

The usual silence overtook them. Kuki had almost forgotten what it was like to be around Wally, to be so present with a friend yet so utterly lost as to what to say. She ached for time to go faster, for the pizza in the oven to melt quicker so she could escape. Alas, she was stuck.

Wally stood motionless and pensive, with his face turned away from her as he stared out the window. Kuki wondered what he was thinking. He was always quiet around her lately, and she hated it. At this point, she almost preferred how obnoxious and mocking he used to be.

He suddenly turned to her, lifting himself off the counter with some kind of renewed determination, but when he opened his mouth to say something, he froze. Kuki watched him for a few seconds, blinking in confusion as he struggled with whatever he meant to say. Then she started noticing a series of small movements on his part - the way he repeatedly balled his hand up into a fist and lightly tapped the counter, his shoe lifting to scratch the back of his other leg, his fingers running through his hair, ruffling it more than usual… That was when Kuki realized: Wally was _nervous_.

Losing all sense of discomfort, she now stared at him with a certain awe. She had never seen him nervous before. For as long as she knew him, he mostly had two states: he was either mischievous, or surly, but never nervous. Seeing him in this state now, she _really_ wondered what was going through his mind.

"Um… Wally? Are you okay?"

"OF COURSE I AM, WHY WOULDN'T I BE?"

The sound of his voice snapping at her faded into the silence. Kuki stood at her spot, wide-eyed and leaning back slightly from the impact of the sudden outburst.

"S-sorry…" He said after noticing the look on her face. "I have something in my mind, that's all…"

A small, defensive part of Kuki wanted to get mad. _Who does he think he is, talking to me like that?!_ it said. But as she watched Wally's expression switch from nervous, to defensive, to nervous again, the larger part of her softened. There was something about the way shifted uncomfortably in front of her, something as endearing as it was alarming. It was...cute.

A small giggle escaped from her.

"What's so funny?" He said to her, a defensive pout on his face.

"Nothing, nothing… I just missed you, that's all."

The words floated out of her faster than she could cover her mouth with her hand. This time it was she who shifted uncomfortably in front of him.

He seemed baffled at first, but soon the defensiveness that was in his eyes gave way to a certain tenderness. And just like that, he was the same guy who walked her home from the park a few weeks ago.

The icy tension that possessed the spaced between them just now melted away, and Wally relaxed, leaning against the counter once again.

"I heard you and Wallace broke up two weeks ago…" He said after some time.

Kuki blinked in surprise. _Has it only been two weeks since that happened? No wonder Abby was so surprised._ "Yeah," she replied. "It was inevitable, I think."

A small laughed escaped Wally's throat.

"What's so funny?"

He spent a second containing his growing grin before he spoke. "I told you he was a jerk."

Kuki pouted sheepishly. "Rub it in, why don't you?!"

"But I was right, wasn't I?"

Kuki held her pout for another second before giving way to her own laughter. "Yeah, he was a jerk."

This time they both laughed, and their laughter feathered the quietness around them, eventually fading back into a tender silence. A few moments passed before Wally suddenly lifted himself off the counter once again and turned to her.

"Listen, uh… I wanted to ask you something," he said.

He walked up to her, closing the distance between them into a mere foot. To Kuki's surprise, her heart was pounding, and the closer he got, the dryer her throat became from the ragged breaths that now swept in and out of her.

"What… What is it?" She said weakly.

His soft, green eyes bore into her, tender with whatever words hung at the tip of his tongue. "I was wondering if…"

Two strange things suddenly happened.

First they heard the sound of a wooden door giving in, and suddenly the back door burst open. Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie spilled through the doorway and onto the floor like a pile of Jenga pieces, looking guilty as they fell.

"Alright, who bumped against the door knob?!"

"Abby did!"

"No, I didn't! And GET OFF me, Hoagie!"

The second strange thing that happened was that an unfamiliar tap sounded at the front door. All five heads turned towards the living room, every face with a puzzled expression on it. Another tap sounded, prompting Kuki to walk over and open the door.

"SURPRISE!"

A batch of peonies burst into view inches before her face, then behind them, she found Walter's gleeful eyes.

"Walter?!" She exclaimed before her eyes landed back on the flowers. "You brought me flowers?!"

"Ugh… It's too cheesy, isn't it? I knew it. It's too cheesy."

"No, not at all! I love peonies!" Kuki grabbed the peonies from his hand and held them aside as she jumped forward to give me him an eager hug. "I'm so glad you made it!"

"Thanks for inviting me. I can't wait to meet your friends."

"Come on in, I'll introduce you to everyone!"

* * *

Half an hour later, Kuki was sitting at the table in the clubhouse, smiling endearingly as she watched Walter across the room. The poor boy sank into the beanbag as he got trilled by a friend in every direction. If he looked to his left, he met Abby's sharp and deadly silent scowl. If he looked to his right, he met Nigel's puzzled, scrutinizing gaze. And if he looked above him, he only found Hoagie's curious expression hovering over him. Questions fired towards him, one right after another, each one getting more ridiculous than the one before.

"How did you meet Kuki?"

"What school do you go to?"

"How come we've never seen you around before?"

"How many girlfriends have you had?"

"What's your position on veggie pizzas?"

"Are those glasses real?"

"Do you ACTUALLY like Rainbow Monkeys or is it just a ploy to get girls?"

Despite the grilling stares and the rapid fire questions, he responded to all of them kindly, smiling at Kuki every chance he got. Kuki giggled as she wondered about the best time to rescue him. It was bad enough that he walked into an oddly tense room when he first arrived; now he had to deal with her friends' utter disregard for personal space. In the end, she thought it best to leave him in the fire. If he's going to win their hearts over, he might as well do it now.

There was a sound of a chair being pulled back behind her, and she turned around to find Wally throwing himself down into a seat across the table. She was surprised to see him, partly because he looked surlier than usual and partly because she hadn't seen him since Walter arrived.

"Where'd you meet this guy?" He asked scathingly as he eyed Walter from his seat.

"We met at a bookstore a few days ago."

"A few _days_ ago? He went from being nobody to being your boyfriend?"

Kuki drew back, shocked by the aggressiveness in his tone. "Not exactly, we _did_ go on a few dates," She scowled.

Wally's stared at Walter, his eyes burning with a certain vitriolic calm. "You seriously don't believe that this guy likes Rainbow Monkeys, do you?"

"Why would he lie to me?"

"NO GUY likes Rainbow Monkeys. Rainbow Monkeys are _stupid_."

A small pang of pain seeped into Kuki's chest as Wally's sour mood unfolded against her. "Wally, not all guys are like you..." She said quietly, almost scornfully.

Wally's burning eyes moved towards her, seemingly ready to spit out more venom. It was like their fight at the Cheezaria all over again. On one hand, Kuki felt blood rushing to her cheeks as her defenses slowly came up. On the other hand, she fought back tears that threatened to seep through her eyes.

_Why is he acting like this...?_

She braced herself for another blow, but to her surprise, Wally turned away from her and leaned back against his chair. A long, tragic sigh came out of him, diffusing her anger as if she herself had taken a deep breath.

"Wally... Are you mad at me or something?"

Wally dropped his gaze to the ground. "Why didn't you tell me you and Wallace broke up...? I had to found out from Hoagie, then out of nowhere, you disappeared for two weeks."

Kuki's shoulders sank as she was disarmed by the sudden sincerity in his tone. "I didn't think it would matter to you. Besides, you seemed preoccupied with..." A thought clicked in Kuki's mind as she meant to finish her sentence. _Kathy_, she thought. She hadn't seen Kathy all day. "Where's Kathy?"

Wally looked at her one last time before getting up and getting ready to leave. In the small gap between her asking her question and him rising, a certain hunch manifested in Kuki's core. Suddenly, to her confusion, a strange ache pierced through her chest - a sort of grieving for something that felt like a missed opportunity.

"Kathy and I broke up a week ago," Wally said quietly as he left her at the table and left the clubhouse altogether.


	9. Sharper Than the Last Stab

Walter was nothing short of an enigma. A very sweet, very friendly, and incredibly charming enigma. During the first few days he spent by Kuki's side, he patiently dealt with the odd though comical belligerence from her friends. He answered every question, he welcomed every scrutiny, he even forgave aggression if there were any (though it was mostly from Abby). In time, the apprehension that surrounded him not only faded but was replaced by warmth and welcome, eventually turning him into a natural presence in the clubhouse. Much to Kuki's amazement, it seemed that in just a matter of days, he won over everyone's hearts. All except for one.

"Flowers again?" Kuki said in delight as he walked in one day with a bouquet in his hands. This time, he brought her sunflowers.

"Don't get too excited. I stopped by my uncle's work today and they were part of the set. I swiped some for you."

"What a criminal," Kuki giggled as Walter planted a kiss on her cheek.

Walter had just handed the flowers to Kuki when he suddenly went "OOF!" as he got tackled into a giant bear hug.

"WALTER BUDDYYYYY!" Hoagie said teasingly as he swayed Walter side to side. He plopped Walter back down on the ground and gave out a chuckle.

"Hey Hoagie," Walter laughed as he coughed for air. "Charming as always."

Hoagie laughingly patted him on the back before heading over to the table where he resumed a card game he had been playing with Nigel.

"Oh, Nigel!" Walter said. He took out a book from a backpack he was carrying and handed it to Nigel. "Thanks for the loaner."

"You finished already?"

"Yup."

"What did you think of it?"

"It was fantastic. I could see what you meant about the symbolism in the court scene."

"Very nice. Do you want another one? I have a few more I can recommend."

"Keep'em coming!"

Walter turned back to join Kuki at the beanbags but paused when he found that Abby had claimed what would've been his seat. Kuki smiled sheepishly as Abby posed next to her, looking like a lioness guarding a cub. Abby raised an eyebrow at Walter, narrowing her eyes sharply at him.

Walter planted his fists on his sides and sighed, smiling. "What did I do this time? Did I forget to open the door for Kuki? Should I have gotten her roses instead of sunflowers?"

Abby held her face for another second, then her lips stretched into a reserved smirk. "You're safe for now, I suppose."

"Ah. I'm glad I passed today. What's tomorrow's test gonna be?"

"You'll have to stay tuned."

"Good. I'll wear a bullet-proof vest just in case."

Abby stifled a laugh but her face didn't flinch from its solid, amusing glare. Kuki shook her head in amazement. Other than Hoagie, Walter was the only other person she knew who managed to make Abby laugh through her scowl.

"I'll be back, I'm gonna get a vase for these flowers," she said as another banter started between the two.

She walked over and inspected a shelf next to the TV, having seen a vase hidden somewhere in there before. She was bent down, searching, when she suddenly felt a pair of eyes burning a hole on the back of her head. She straightened up and turned around to find Wally's cold eyes piercing through her like a sword. She stared, blinking curiously, not knowing what crime she committed this time.

"You're blocking the TV," He said frigidly.

Kuki moved aside to accommodate him, careful not to block the TV again as she continued to search for a vase, feeling his eyes on her the entire time. Once she found what she needed, she walked away quietly, averting his eyes and trying her best not to mind the hostility with which he spoke.

If Walter was a refreshing summer breeze, then Wally had become the radiating heat of a thousand burning suns. During the last few weeks, he had been much more hot-tempered than usual, always slumped quietly against the couch, staring - not actually watching - whatever program came on TV. And while everyone dealt with his attitude in the way they normally did, Kuki avoided him altogether, as she couldn't help but notice that he was particularly impatient with her. Though she tried not to think about it, a small part of her grieved the sudden cold shoulder. He'd always been cold to her, but never like this before.

"Kuki, don't forget, the movie starts in twenty minutes. We should probably get going soon."

"Okay, I'm ready!"

Kuki ran over to Walter and hooked her arm around his, bidding everyone goodbye along the way. They were just about to walk out the door when Walter suddenly stopped. "Oh, I almost forgot!" He said, turning around. "Wally, I have something for you."

A cold, deadly silence fell upon the room as everyone's head turned towards Walter, then to the back of Wally's head.

For what seemed like an eternity, Kuki and her friends waited for Wally's reaction. At first, he was as motionless as a statue. Then slowly, frighteningly, he stood up and turned around - his face like cold, hard stone, his chest broad and threatening, his height more towering than usual.

Perfectly oblivious to the tension that enveloped the room, Walter walked over to him, digging into his backpack along the way. "Didn't you say you like football? I got this for you." He took out what looked like a picture frame and held it towards Wally.

Wally glared at him for a few seconds, but the ferocity that emanated from his eyes missed Walter like a blowtorch firing against the wind. He looked down at the item in Walter's hand, and though it was subtle, a small glimmer of recognition - perhaps even excitement - flashed in his eyes. His eyebrows drew together - a small sign of confusion amidst the overall vexation on his face. "Is that…?"

"An autographed photo of Chad Dickson? Yup. Apparently his daughter is a huge fan of the Rainbow Monkey show, so they visited the set earlier. Hoagie told me you were a fan, so I got him to sign this for you. I put it in a frame because I didn't want it to wrinkle. I hope you don't mind."

Wally's eyes moved slowly from the frame up to Walter's face.

When they were all ten years old, Kuki had a stuffed animal named Mr. Huggykins. She adored the damn thing and lavished it with hugs and kisses as if there were no tomorrow, all the while squealing with joy whenever its voice box serenaded her with endless, goofy-sounding phrases like "I WUV YOO!"

Wally _hated_ Mr. Huggykins. He hated him so much that he punched and kicked it every time he got a chance, until one day he punched it so hard, its head ripped off. Kuki was miserable for days, and though Wally eventually made it up to her, Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie will never forget the look on Wally's face right before he delivered the fatal blow to Mr. Huggykin's face.

Wally had that look on his face now.

Cold, deadly silence held the room as Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie waited nervously.

"What's wrong?" Painfully-innocent-Walter asked him. "You don't want it?"

Wally's eyes flickered like a broken light bulb, going back and forth between furious and disoriented. "This is priceless… Why are you giving it to me?"

Walter shrugged. "Friendly gesture, I guess."

By now, everyone in the room was collectively holding their breath and were all on the verge of suffocating. Then, to their unanimous surprise, Wally reached up and - slowly, hesitantly, suspiciously - took the frame Walter's hand. "Thanks…" He mumbled, the vitriol in his voice fading into a fainter poison. Everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief.

"No problem," Walter said cheerily and walked back to Kuki. "Ready to go?"

Kuki stared at him in amazement, searching his eyes for any recognition of the stunt that he just pulled. All she saw, however, was the usual earnestness in his smile.

"That was awfully nice of you," She said to Walter later that day as they walked through the town.

"Like I said, it was a friendly gesture," Walter shrugged, then later added, "Besides… Sometimes I get a feeling Wally doesn't like me. I'm not sure if there's any truth to it, but either way, I'd feel terrible if I were in bad terms with any of your friends."

Kuki gazed at him, a large part of her adoring his pure wholesomeness while a small part questioned his seeming perfection. She'd never been with anyone so flawless.

Her thoughts went back to earlier that day when the two of them left the clubhouse, just after he handed Wally the autograph. Kuki had stolen a glance at Wally just before the door shut behind them. He was still standing by the couch with the frame in his hands. He looked confused, he looked angry, he looked stunned. Most of all, he looked defeated.

* * *

Another week passed - or maybe two. Either way, people lost count as the days passed and everyone fell more head over heels over Walter. In time he became such a natural fixture at the clubhouse that Kuki couldn't help but be overjoyed to finally be with someone so fitting not just for herself but for her friends.

Ever since Walter's friendly gesture, even Wally has calmed down, resorting to silence in lieu of any valid reasons to hate him. He resolved to silence now, as another day passed - another day at the clubhouse, another day sitting in front of the TV, flipping through shows that he never truly cared about. His ear perked at the sound of Kuki somewhere behind him, laughing at some joke Walter must have said. He didn't turn around - no, he _avoided_ turning around - but he could imagine what they must have looked like, snuggled together at the beanbags, laughing, smiling, enjoying each other's company. Perfect.

A few weeks ago, this scenario would have been different. Yes, Hoagie still would've been cracking corny jokes. Yes, Abby still would've been shaking her head and throwing out smart comments. Yes, Nigel still would've been reading in the corner.

But Walter wouldn't have been there.

And Kuki would have been _here_, right next to Wally, fighting him for the remote control, the two of them bickering over what show to watch, taking shots at each other's interests, fighting over this, fighting over that…

They would have been fighting about everything. Nevertheless, it would have been just the two of them.

Because even though he often made her mad, it was his only excuse to talk to her.

Because even though she wrestled him for the remote, it was his only excuse to touch her.

Because even though he hated ticking her off, it was easier to get her attention as her enemy than as her friend.

Because he would have done anything - _anything_ \- just to get her attention.

Wally crossed his arms and clenched his fists, his nails digging into his skin. Those days were long gone now. He couldn't do any of those things anymore. He couldn't make fun of her tofu and her veggie pizzas, her Rainbow Monkeys and her dainty frame. He couldn't tug at her hair for fun, or fight her for a spot on the couch. Not when she had a perfect guy by her side, protecting her, humoring her, lavishing her with his attention, and worse, his pure, unadulterated goodness.

Wally couldn't come near her, not when Walter was there, not when Walter seemed to be everything she deserved in a boyfriend.

Wally unclenched his fist as he felt her slipping away from the tips of his fingers. He had nothing now. Nothing but an awkward friendship to hold on to.


	10. The Unexpected Visitor

Normalcy - at least something like it - was finally returning to their daily lives at the clubhouse. There was no Wallace prancing around suffocating people with his ego, no Kathy screeching every five minutes about some trivial offense; even the constant and exhausting arguments between Wally and Kuki have gone away, now that Wally mostly isolated himself at the couch and Kuki spent most of her time absorbed with Walter.

Things were, for the most part, back to normal.

That was until one day when a fireball of a human being crashed into their lives.

* * *

"Alright people, listen up!"

Hoagie stood in the middle of the clubhouse with his hands planted on his sides, looking like a sergeant posing in front of a batch of cadets. Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and turned to him.

"This is an extremely sensitive mission we've got here. Every single one of you will need to give your all to make sure this gets executed properly. One little hiccup, and the whole thing is doomed for failure!" He scanned the room, eyeing each person sternly, demanding every individual's undivided cooperation. "Alright then! Let's go over materials! Walter - sandwiches?!"

Walter held up a basket enthusiastically. "Yes, sir - right here!"

"Excellent. Kuki - pie?!"

Kuki giggled as she held up the pie-shaped container in her hands. "Warm, extra cherry-licious, and ready!"

"Nigel - potato salad?!"

Nigel sighed and shook his head.

"NIGEL!"

"YES, Hoagie, YES. I have the potato salad!"

"With extra relish like the way I like it?!"

"YES."

"Good. Wally - sodas?!"

Wally rolled his eyes and saluted lazily.

"Excellent! Now…" He turned to Abby and narrowed his eyes for extra measure. "Abby…"

Abby stared directly at him, casually chewing a piece of gum.

"Cups? Plates? Utensils?"

Abby's response to his stern gaze was a cherry flavored bubble inflating then popping against her lips.

"ABBY!"

"Oh would you RELAX?! It's a picnic! We're not exactly performing a sting operation here!"

Hoagie eyed her firmly for a few seconds, trembling comically, then suddenly his shoulders sank and his face rearranged itself to an adorable little pout.

Abby scowled at the sight of his puppy dog eyes, but then she sighed. "Okay, Hoagie, OKAY. I have everything we need. Stop worrying."

"YES!" Hoagie jumped excitedly as he turned back to everyone. "Picnic blanket is locked and loaded, courtesy of yours truly. Alright, it looks like we're all set! Everyone ready?"

The whole room nodded in agreement except for Wally, whose placid voice floated up from the back. "Oh wait… I forgot to tell you…"

People hardly had a chance to look at him when suddenly a voice yelled from somewhere outside the clubhouse, getting louder as it reached everyone's ears.

"SNEAK ATTAAAAAAAACK!"

Everything that happened next happened in a flash. The door slammed open, causing Hoagie to yelp and jump out of the way, and everyone whirled away instinctively as something flashed past them, zooming from the door to where Wally stood.

There was a sound of bodies crashing to the floor, followed by a brief, tense silence, laced with an audible set of panting as everyone in the room stood frozen, eyes shut and bodies turned away, their arms and hands held up in defense.

Once the momentary chaos died down, they all looked up to inspect what felt like a comet that crashe into the room. Instead what they found was Wally sprawled on the ground, and pinned beneath him was not a comet, but a girl.

"_First of all_," Wally said furiously to her, "it's not a sneak attack if you yell 'sneak attack' before you do it! _Second of all_," he lowered his face to glare directly at her, "Are you _crazy_? I could've broken your neck!"

Any normal human being would have cowered beneath the weight of Wally's glare, but clearly this girl wasn't any normal human being. A big smile spread across her face and a hearty laugh rippled from her throat. "Good reflexes, though! You win this time."

Wally growled at her, then he stood up and helped her to her feet. "Don't do that again. You might hurt yourself."

"Awww, is it just me or is there a bit of worry underneath that scowl of yours?"

"Oh shut up."

The girl leaned closer towards Wally's face, beaming, taunting the smile that twitched in the corner of his lips. For what felt like a long period of time, the two of them stared at each other, locked in a mutual grin, oblivious to the puzzled gazes surrounding them.

It was a few seconds before she finally noticed. "Oh look!" She said. "People!"

Wally blinked and shook his head, his smile fading as he remembered where he was. "Right," he coughed. "Everyone, this is Katie. She's… Katie, cut that out."

The girl - Katie - was leaning towards him teasingly, flashing a mischievous grin directly at his face. "I'm your what, Wally?"

"I said cut it out!"

"I'm your giiiiirlfriend?"

Wally tried to scowl at her, but there was something about her playful smile that defeated him. The corner of his lips twitched into a smile, then a small stifled laugh came out of him. He turned to everyone, looking at no one in particular. "This is Katie, my girlfriend. I meant to tell you that she's joining us for the picnic."

"Hey everyone!" Katie said happily.

The room was silent, partly from the trauma of Katie's unusual entrance, and partly from the odd revelation as to who she was. Walter, typically oblivious to the tension in his surroundings, was the first to step up and shake her hand. "Hi Katie, I'm Walter! Pleased to meet you."

Soon, Nigel and Hoagie followed suit. Abby did too, though she seemed particularly hesitant.

Finally, Katie got to Kuki, and she held her hand out along with a cheery smile. "Hiya, I'm Katie."

Her friendly greeting was met with Kuki's stunned, gaping eyes, but soon Kuki became aware of herself, and she immediately shook away her expression. She took Katie's hand in hers and shook pleasantly. "Hi Katie, I'm Kuki."

"Nice to meet ya, Kuki. Hey! Are those Rainbow Monkey earrings?!"

Kuki fell back a few steps as Katie excitedly leaned towards her to inspect the studs in her ears. "Uh, yeah," she said awkwardly. "I've had them since I was ten."

"That's so cute! I used to love that show!"

There was an audible scoff behind Katie, and she whipped around to look at Wally. "Something funny?!"

"You watched Rainbow Monkeys?" He said with a teasing grin. "_You_?"

Katie skipped towards him and landed a punch on his shoulder. "So what if I DID!"

Wally laughed as she followed up with a few more punches, lightly catching her fists in his hands every now and then. Suddenly it was like they were all alone in the room again, until Nigel coughed to get their attention.

"Right," he said to them. "Shall we get going?"

* * *

The whole group sat across the picnic blanket, watching with collective awe as Wally and Katie threw a football back and forth in the field in front of them. It was like watching two Wallys at once - both pelting equally powerful throws, taunting one another, laughing like a maniac at every victory and throwing a fit of range at every loss... Except, while one was their tall, lanky, blonde-haired, messy-headed Wally, the other was a tall, slender, blonde, messy-short-hair-and-half-ponytail-headed Katie. The girl was a strange phenomenon that they all couldn't help but study as she sprinted in every direction, chasing the football wherever Wally threw it.

"You didn't know about her, Hoagie?" said Abby.

"Me? No, he never mentioned her at all. Nigel, what about you? Did he tell you about her?"

"Not a word. If anything, I would've thought he told you, Abby."

"No, I had no idea."

They watched further as Wally swore in the distance, kicking the grass angrily after missing one of Katie's throws. She celebrated her victory by dancing around and sticking her tongue out at him playfully.

"How long have they been going out...?" Kuki's voice floated softly towards Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie. The three of them turned their heads towards her. She was sitting towards the back of the mat, her face blank and her eyes innocent. Other than talking to Walter, she had hardly said a word since they got to the park.

"Two weeks," Hoagie answered her. "At least that's what he told me earlier."

Walter laid his head on Kuki's lap and closed his eyes as he stretched his legs out towards the edge of the mat. "Well, I'm glad they met. It's nice to see him having fun for once," he said contentedly.

Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie studied him for a moment, then their eyes moved towards Kuki who avoided their eyes as she quietly sipped her drink. Suddenly they heard a rapid padding towards them, and the next thing they saw was Katie tripping over Walter's outstretched legs and tumbling violently on the grass.

Walter sat up with jolt as he realized what happened. "Katie, are you okay?!"

Katie scrambled to her feet and turned to him. "Sorry, Walter, I didn't see your legs there!" She turned towards the field where Wally was visibly laughing so hard, he was close to falling on the ground. "YOU ARE SO DEAD!" She roared at him.

She sped off like a rocket towards him, chasing him through the field, closing in as he taunted her with his laughter. The rest of the group watched in awe as she caught up and tackled him to the ground. Had they not realized that the two of them were laughing as they tumbled around, they would have thought they were watching an actual wrestling match.

"Wow…" Walter said as he watched in amazement with the rest of the group. "They seem perfect for each other..."

* * *

Some time later, Kuki was sitting on the picnic blanket, watching as Katie and the boys huddled to discuss the rules of their next game. Walter had gone home for the day, having promised to spend time with his little sister, and with no other means of entertainment available, Kuki contented herself with watching her friends.

Katie and the boys had just dispersed to their positions when Kuki suddenly felt the weight of someone's eyes on her. She turned to the side and found Abby gazing at her.

She gazed back, blinking innocently. "What is it, Abby?"

Abby studied her quietly in response.

"Abby," Kuki repeated, "What is it?"

Her question hung in the air for a moment before Abby responded with a question of her own. "Are you okay?"

Kuki's brows drew together. "Of course I am, why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, I just wanted to check, given the…" Abby's eyes darted at Katie for a moment. "...new developments."

Kuki stared blankly at her, refusing to acknowledge whatever it was that she implied. "Abby, I don't know what you're talking about."

Abby said nothing but only gave a loaded stare, challenging her to cave into admission. They were interrupted when they noticed Nigel jogging over to them. "Abby, I think Hoagie needs you."

They all looked towards the field where Hoagie was on the ground, curled up in pain. Standing over him was Katie, apologizing frantically, while Wally stood yards away, bent over from laughter.

"What happened?!" Abby cried as she got on her feet.

"She's got an arm on her, that Katie," Nigel shrugged.

Abby shot him an angry look before jogging away towards Hoagie.

"Is he okay?" Kuki asked, concerned.

"He's fine," Nigel said. "I wouldn't be surprised if he's doing it for a show. You know how Hoagie is."

They watched their friends for a few moments, and when it became clear that Hoagie was fine, Nigel turned to Kuki. "That's enough fun for one day. Shall we call it a day?"

"Yup, I think so," Kuki agreed as she got on her feet. "I'll help you clean up."

The two of them worked their way around the picnic spread, collecting the trash and putting away the leftovers, working silently together throughout the entire time. Nigel was not the type who felt the need to fill silence with unnecessary talk, and for that, Kuki was grateful. They were packing up the last of the materials when Kuki suddenly detected a change in the atmosphere. The ease in the silence faded away, and it was replaced by the loaded vibe of an impending conversation. Kuki felt a sinking feeling as she anticipated Nigel's version of Abby's interrogation.

"Kuki," He called her name, oddly sounding just like her Dad whenever he caught her trying to sneak away.

Kuki sighed, already tired of the conversation. "Yes, Nigel?"

Nigel moved casually - stealthily - eyeing the others every now and then to make sure that they don't notice what was obviously a serious conversation going on. "I know you already know this, but if you ever need to talk, I'm here, okay?"

Kuki let out another sigh. "And what exactly is it that I need to talk to you about?"

Nigel's lips spread into a subtle, knowing smile. "Anything."

Kuki eyed him directly, feeling determined to challenge his suspicions. "Oh, I see. It's about Walter's birthday coming up, right? You wanted to talk about what present I should get him?"

Nigel directed his knowing smile at her, very much the same way her father knowingly smiled at her whenever she was on the losing side of an argument. She stared back blankly and rebelliously.

"I'm not forcing you to talk," He said patiently. "All I'm saying is, I'm here if you need me."

Giving her one more loving smile, he playfully pinched her nose before walking away towards the others.

* * *

"It was nice to meet you all!" Katie waved happily at all of them as she walked backwards towards the other direction. Wally walked by her side, a contented smile on his face as he planted his hands in his pockets.

"It was nice to meet you too!" Hoagie and Nigel called back. Even Abby gave her a casual wave goodbye.

Katie flashed one last smile at them before turning towards Wally and pulling him into a headlock. They all watched as he laughed rather than fight her off. Shortly afterwards, Nigel and Abby also bid Hoagie and Kuki goodbye and headed towards their respective homes.

"Welp," Hoagie said, turning to Kuki. "Let's go, m'lady."

Kuki tilted her head and gave him a curious look.

"Walter asked me to walk you home."

A cheery smile spread on Kuki's face as she wrapped her arm around his. "I'm such a lucky, lucky girl! I have _the_ nicest boyfriend in the world and _the_ absolutely sweetest friends!"

Hoagie arranged his face into a pseudo-cocky smile. "I'm the cutest, though. Admit it."

"Yes," Kuki laughed. "Yes, you are."

For the first time in the last hour, Kuki felt relieved. While she half-anticipated Hoagie to interrogate her like the way Nigel and Abby did, he instead filled their journey home with his usual jokes and antics. They spent a good amount of the walk home laughing, stopping every now and then to balance over a fence or to play an impromptu game. By the time they reached her doorstep, Kuki was in such high spirits that she almost completely forgot the conversation with Nigel and Abby.

"Thanks for walking me home, Hoagie!" She said as she gave him a friendly salute. She was just about to turn the knob when he stopped her.

"Hey, Kuki, hold on a sec."

Kuki turned around in anticipation of one last joke, but her smile faded when she saw the look on Hoagie's face.

Hoagie took his hat off and ran a hand over his hair before putting it back on. "Listen, uh… I just want to make sure you're okay."

_Oh no, not you too…_ She thought. "Of course I am, why wouldn't I be?"

"Well it's just that… With Katie coming out of nowhere and all… I mean… None of us were expecting her."

Kuki kept her face blank, but the inner corner of her eyebrow twitched, threatening to reveal something that she didn't want him to see. It was strange. She had no problem keeping a straight face in front of Abby and Nigel, given that it wasn't unusual for them to be so serious. But when Hoagie wasn't being his usual goofy self, somehow it was a lot harder to laugh things off.

"Listen, you don't have to say anything - especially since you have Walter and all," Hoagie continued. "But I just want you to know that Nigel, Abby, and I… Well, we love you and Wally. We just want you guys to be happy."

Kuki felt a pang in her chest and hoped that Hoagie wouldn't notice the wave going down her neck as she gulped. _You and Wally…_ His choice of words echoed in her mind much more than she wanted to allow.

She took her hand off the door knob and walked up to Hoagie, wearing the simplest, most casual smile she could manage. "Hoagie, I don't know what's up with you, Nigel, and Abby today, but whatever it is, I need you all to know that _I'm fine._ Stop worrying about whatever it is you three are worrying about."

Hoagie studied her face for a moment, then he let his lips spread into a half-convinced smile. "Alright," he said halfheartedly. "If you say you're good, then I'm good."

He held out a fist towards her, which she happily bumped with her own, then jogged away towards home.

* * *

Kuki closed the door behind her and leaned against it, shutting her eyes as a long, awaited sigh flowed out from the depth of her lungs.

_Katie..._ The name floated around her mind. She brought her hand up to her chest to try and soothe the subtle aching that beat inside, the one that started the moment Wally called Katie his girlfriend.

A series of images suddenly rushed to Kuki's mind - the way Katie managed to make Wally smile regardless of how hard he tried to scowl, the impressive way with which she matched his athletic skills, the words that came out of Walter's mouth (_Wow… They seem perfect for each other..._).

Kuki's eyes opened widely. _Walter!_ She thought. _Walter… My boyfriend… My perfect boyfriend…_

_But Katie…_ Another part of her thought. _Wally and Katie… Wally…  
_

The ache in her chest tugged extra hard at the last thought, causing her to shake her head aggressively in an attempt to shut it down.

"I'm okay," she said to herself, trying to sound as convincing as she was with Nigel, Abby, and Hoagie.

The ache tugged once more before fading away beneath the weight of her determination.

"I'm okay…" She said again, much more quietly this time.


	11. Grudges

Kuki walked into the empty clubhouse a week later and smiled when she saw a fresh batch of tulips sitting at the table. The card attached to it read: _ Swiped more flowers from the set for you. They had tulips today! Hope you like them. Love, Walter. _

Laughing softly at the sight of Walter's name, Kuki grabbed a pen nearby, scratched a line across his name, and replaced it with her own writing. It now read: _ Swiped more flowers from the set for you. They had tulips today! Hope you like them. Love, the most perfect boyfriend that ever existed. _

It wasn't a particularly clever joke, but Kuki knew he would appreciate it, so she scanned the room for a place where he would most likely find it. The bulletin board on the wall seemed like a perfect fit, so she walked over and pinned the note against it.

She was just imagining the look he would have on his face when another recent addition to the board drew her attention. The beaten scrap of paper had a line drawn down the middle, with Wally's name scribbled on one side, and Katie's on the other. Beneath each name was a set of tallies - scores, Kuki assumed - and it appeared that Katie was leading by two points. Kuki immediately thought back to a few days ago, when Wally stormed out after losing to Katie on what was apparently a very intense round in his favorite video game. Katie laughed so hard at his reaction that she fell off the couch amidst her triumph.

As entertaining as the thought was, Kuki's face showed no signs of fondness for the memory. With no one around to watch her expressions - no Abby looking at her sideways, no Nigel observing her from afar, no Hoagie pretending to miss her reactions - her face seized the rare opportunity to openly display its sullenness. Her face tensed, and she sighed as an all-too-familiar ache started beating against her chest. Ever since Katie came along, this ache had been her unwanted company, tugging at her every time she was careless enough to look towards Wally and Katie's direction. Even worse was the ugly little feeling that recently made a home inside of her - the petty, catty, thoroughly un-Kuki-like acidity that quietly bubbled whenever Katie was around.

Kuki knew that it was perfectly uncalled for. Much like Walter, Katie had an effortless ability to build rapport with those around her, and it was evident in the way she settled into life at the clubhouse with perfect ease. There was absolutely no reason to hate the girl, and it was for that reason that Kuki spent the last few weeks going out of her way to be polite, to be friendly, and to mercilessly bury every single one of her inner demon's attempts to show.

Kuki returned to the table and began transferring the tulips into a vase, hoping that the busy work would take her mind off of unwanted thoughts. Her mind had just begun to settle when she suddenly detected an odd change in the silence around her. There was something in the air, and she could feel it. Something that wasn't particularly ominous but made her body tense up nonetheless. She turned towards the rest of the room, and waited.

The door suddenly slammed open and in came Katie, bolting towards Kuki as she yelled, "SNEAK ATTAAAAAACK!"

Kuki would have yelped and jumped out of the way had Katie not immediately realized that she was about to tackle the wrong person. Just inches before she reached Kuki, she swerved to the side, and with one miscalculated step, she crashed into the couch last thing that Kuki saw was a pair of legs flinging into the air as Katie tumbled over the couch and landed on the other side.

"Oooooow…" Her moan came shortly after.

"Katie!" Kuki gasped as she ran over. Katie was sitting on the floor, wincing as she rubbed her side. "Are you okay?!"

"Oooow…" Katie moaned again, "I fell on my butt…"

Kuki sighed with relief as she realized that the injury was minor. "What in the world were you thinking?" She scolded.

"I was listening at the door and I heard noises inside. I thought you were Wally, so…"

Kuki gave out a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a sigh. "Katie, you really need to stop charging in like that. You're gonna hurt yourself, like Wally said."

"I know, I know... It's just that tackling him is too fun. Besides, I'm used to falling on my butt. It happens a lot."

Kuki gave out another small laugh, then she got up and helped Katie to the couch. "Well, I'm glad you're okay," She said once Katie was settled. "You should rest up until you feel better."

She turned around to head back to the table, but stopped when Katie called after her. "Where ya goin'?" Katie said.

Kuki looked at her as if she had asked the strangest question in the world. "The flowers," she replied, "I have to transfer them to a vase."

"Aren't you gonna hang out with me?"

The question hung in the air and loomed over Kuki's head like a dark cloud. "You...wanna hang out with me…?" She repeated daftly.

This time it was Katie who stared at her as if she had asked strangest question in the world. "Well, yeah… You and I are the only ones here so far, so I figured we'd hang out."

"Just because we're the only ones here doesn't mean we have to hang out."

Kuki realized immediately how callous she sounded just now, even though she really just wanted to avoid the awkwardness of hanging out alone with Katie. No, not just Katie - _ Wally's girlfriend_. Fortunately for her, Katie was an unbelievably positive person who didn't pick up on such things. It was evident now in the way she happily fluffed the pillows next to her, clearing a spot for Kuki.

"Here, you can sit here!" She said expectantly.

Kuki felt the weight of the silence closing in on her, and she looked at the door, hoping that someone with magical timing might walk in.

"Something wrong?" Katie asked her.

The acid inside Kuki bubbled and hissed, but she silenced it with a polite smile. "No, nothing's wrong," she said, then she moved towards the couch and sat down.

"So what should we do?" Katie mused casually. "Do you play video games?"

"Uh… I'm not exactly the best gamer."

"Oh okay. You wanna watch TV?"

"I don't think you'll like the shows I watch."

"Hmmm, okay. Well, I guess we can just sit here and talk."

The little monster inside Kuki snickered. As it turned out, she should have agreed to watch TV. At least then she wouldn't have had to deal with the awkward silence that was to come.

"Hmmm… What should we talk about…?" Katie mused.

Kuki stared sideways at her, watching as she candidly combed her mind for ideas. _ Doesn't she find this awkward? _ Kuki thought. _ What's wrong with her? _She let out a cough, and it echoed in the silence much louder than she would have liked. The seconds drew by, and with each one that passed, Kuki felt more and more as if she were sinking into a frozen hell.

"On second thought," she said suddenly, "I think I'm gonna go finish up the flowers. I think Walter dropped them off yesterday, and if I don't attend to them soon, they'll wilt."

"Oh okay, I'll go help you."

"No, it's okay. You should just stay here and watch TV until Wally gets here."

"Nah, it's alright, I'd be happy to help."

"No, really, you don't need to do that. It'll be boring."

"It's okay, I don't mind!"

"No, just stay here and watch TV."

"But Kuki, I -"

"I SAID IT'S FINE!"

Kuki's voice echoed throughout the clubhouse and disappeared into the silence as the chirpy expression on Katie's face faded. Kuki's insides sank. She had miscalculated, and the toxic little demon inside of her managed to escape in a single snap.

"On second thought…" Katie said sadly, "I'd rather not bother you…"

Kuki wanted nothing more than to run away at that point, but oddly enough, her body suddenly chose that time to stay thoroughly glued to the spot. She twirled her fingers uncomfortably while Katie withdrew as far away from her as possible, looking like a puppy that had been shooed away.

Strangely enough, the catty monster inside Kuki had gone silent, leaving her with nothing but regret for how she had spoken. She resolved to apologize and was still in the process of gathering the right words when Katie suddenly broke the silence.

"Kuki?" She said hesitantly. "Do you… Do you not like me?"

Kuki gazed at her with a certain awe, dumbfounded by complete guilelessness in her voice. Her first thought was to lie, to feign humor with a mixture of utter denial, but there was something about the sincerity in Katie's face that made it impossible for her to even attempt it. She opted for the next best option: she responded with her own question. "What makes you think that?"

Katie rubbed the back of her neck apprehensively. "Well, it's just that… Ever since I started coming here, everyone's been so cool and welcoming, and it made me really happy because all I wanted was to get along with Wally's friends. You've been nice too, but…"

Kuki watched intently as Katie continued.

"...but sometimes I get this feeling that you don't really like me. It's almost like you're really just going out of your way to be nice to me. It could all be in my head of course, but… The way you talked just now makes me think I might have been onto something. I don't expect everyone to like me, but… If I did something to make you mad, I'd rather you let me know. I'd hate to be in bad terms with any of Wally's friends…"

The words that Katie spoke seeped into Kuki like water pouring over a set of burning coal, extinguishing every bit of the hostility she felt within. Her face fell as she guiltily reflected on how unfair she had been to Katie - whether Katie knew it or not. "I'm sorry," she sighed. "I didn't mean to make you feel that way. It's just that…"

She paused, not knowing how to finish her sentence. And what exactly did she have to say? She'd always known that she didn't have a valid reason to dislike Katie, while the real reason - the _ true _reason - was something that she wasn't ready to admit even to herself.

"Tell you what," She said to Katie. "Let me make it up to you. Why don't we hang out today? Just you and me?"

A flash of excitement lit up in Katie's eyes though her expression remained hesitant. "Really?"

"Yeah," Kuki said with more encouragement, "We could go to the mall and get food or something."

Katie studied her for a moment as if to check her sincerity, and when she was convinced, her face lit up with her usual, cheerful animation. "AWESOME! This gonna be so much fun!" She said as she scrambled from the couch to the door, looking as if she were a dog about to be taken out for a walk.

Kuki smiled as she got up to join her, even though deep inside, she worried and wondered when the monster within her might snap again.

* * *

An hour later, they were sitting at a food court in the mall, and Kuki watched with slight astonishment as Katie chowed down on a burger and some fries.

"So much like Wally…" She mumbled.

"What?" Katie said, looking up from her food.

"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking about how much you remind me of Wally. That's his favorite thing from the menu, you know."

"Oh," Katie laughed. "That doesn't surprise me. That guy eats like a dinosaur."

Kuki laughed too. "Yeah, he does…"

Katie took a sip of her soda and gazed at Kuki amicably. "So... How long have you and Wally known each other?"

Kuki blinked hesitantly at her. The time they've spent together so far has been surprisingly painless, much thanks to Katie's good nature, but Kuki still wasn't sure how well she would do with a casual conversation, let alone a conversation about Wally.

"We've known each other since we were kids," She answered carefully. "We all have. Me, him, and the others. We've actually been hanging out in Nigel's backyard since we were about seven years old."

"Wow. Sounds like a really tight friendship."

"Absolutely. They're my best friends in the whole wide world. I wouldn't know what to do without them."

Katie nodded her head in agreement. "I'm sure they feel that way about you too. Especially Wally."

Kuki's insides jumped with curiosity. "What do you mean…?"

"He talks about you a lot!" Katie laughed.

"...He does…?"

"Yeah! Sometimes he and I would be hanging out, and he'll just point out something that reminds him of you. Just the other day he pointed out a Rainbow Monkey bracelet that you might like."

"Oh…" Kuki mumbled. She didn't know whether to smile or to be confused.

"I gave him a lot of crap about it and everything," Katie laughed.

"Oh!" Kuki gasped. "Katie, I… I'm sorry. I'm sure it didn't mean anything!"

Katie blinked at her with a puzzled expression, then she grew amused as she realized that Kuki had misunderstood her. "Oh no, that's not what I meant!" She laughed. "I wasn't jealous or anything! I was just making fun of him for looking at a Rainbow Monkey bracelet!"

She gave out a hearty laugh, and Kuki watched her with some level of admiration. Somehow she could never imagine a conversation like this with Kathy, or any other girl for that matter.

"You know, Wally acts like a tough guy and all, but at the end of the day, he's a big softy inside," Katie mused. "If only he would stop letting his ego get in the way."

"Right…" Kuki smiled.

The two of them were silent for a moment, then Katie spoke out of nowhere. "Can I ask you something?" She said.

"Sure."

Katie's mouth tilted into a curious yet hesitant smile. "Would you ever date Wally?"

Kuki coughed violently in response. She had been sipping her drink pensively, and the soda was on its way down her throat when Katie asked her question.

Somewhere deep inside Kuki, the monster reawakened and hissed. _ This is a trap _ , she thought. _ It has to be. No girl would ever ask a question like this unless it's a trap. _"Katie, that's a really weird question to ask!" She said shockingly, almost scornfully. "You're his _ girlfriend _!"

"I know, I know, and I'm sorry!" Katie laughed as she waved her hands apologetically. "It's just that… You and Wally act so strange around each other that it kinda makes me wonder if there's something there."

At this point, a battle had ensued within Kuki. Half of her was the secret toxicity fighting to shut the would-be trap down, and the other was her usual self growing extremely curious about what Katie had to say. Her curiosity won, and she waited with a vacant expression as Katie continued.

"Not that I'd mind, you know…" She said guilelessly. "I mean… You guys have been friends for a really long time, and even though I like Wally a lot, we've only been dating for a few weeks." She sipped her soda quietly for a minute, then she looked at Kuki sincerely, almost as if she was gauging a response. "If I'm in the way of something, I'd rather know."

Kuki gazed at her with a mixture of disbelief and confusion, but as desperate as she was to shut the conversation down, there was something about the genuine innocence in Katie's face that made it hard for her to avert the question. She sighed anxiously, incredulous that she was about to confess her feelings to Wally's girlfriend, of all people in the world.

"Wally and I are opposites. We've always been opposites, and it's always made our friendship awkward," She confessed sadly. "He would never be interested in someone like me."

It was a fair answer, she thought. She spoke the truth that Katie was asking for without truly confessing her own feelings on the matter. _ I wish he'd notice me _ , she almost wanted to tell her, _ but he's better off with someone like you. _

Oddly enough, Katie gazed at her sympathetically, as if she had forgotten that they were technically talking about her very own boyfriend. Then Kuki noticed something else on her face. She couldn't quite pin the expression because of how subtle it was, but it made her think that Katie knew something that she didn't.

"Well in that case," Katie said, her voice sounding lively against the silence just now, " I guess it's a good thing you found Walter. You two seem perfect for each other."

Kuki blinked in surprise. _ Walter _ . She had completely forgotten about Walter. Wasn't it just an hour ago when she was jokingly musing that he was the most perfect boyfriend ever? How should she forget about a perfect boyfriend? _ Her boyfriend?_ Thinking back to it now, she realized that a simple "I have a boyfriend" would have been a sensible reaction to Katie's question. Why didn't it cross her mind?

"Anyway, I'm sorry I made you uncomfortable," Katie giggled. "I promise never to ask you questions like that ever again."

Studying the innocence in Katie's face one more time, Kuki smiled. "You're a really strange girlfriend, Katie."

Katie fell back in a fit of laughter, during which Kuki's mind quietly reflected on the parts of her that she had never pondered before. She had never met anyone so wholesome, so amicable, so charmingly open. And looking at her more, Kuki also realized that beneath the oddball personality and the messily half-tied hair was a stunning set of bright hazel eyes and a wide, beautiful grin.

She could feel the monster inside of her subsiding, its growls fading into small, gentle purrs.

_Funny, beautiful, athletic, nice… _ Kuki mentally listed all the wonderful things about the girl before her. _ No wonder Wally likes her so much… She's perfect. _

* * *

Seven shops, three shopping bags, and one spontaneous makeover later, Kuki and Katie made their way back to the clubhouse, decked out in their new dresses.

"I can't wait to see the look on Wally's face when he sees me in a dress!" Katie laughed as they walked across Nigel's backyard. "He's gonna flip. It'll be so funny!"

"I'm sure he will," Kuki giggled.

"I think I can hear him in there now!" Katie said excitedly, and she rushed ahead of Kuki and burst into the clubhouse.

Kuki lingered outside the door and listened.

"Wally, check it out!" She heard Katie say excitedly.

"What the heck happened to you?" Wally said with a mixture of awe and laughter in his tone.

"Cute, huh?!"

"You look...different."

"That's not the reaction I was going for, you bonehead!"

"Relax, I was just joking! You look nice."

"You're just saying that because you don't wanna get pounded!"

"Well then maybe next time you shouldn't threaten people into giving you compliments!"

"Say that to my knuckles and let's see if you'll still be laughing without teeth!"

Kuki listened to the banter with a bittersweet smile on her face. They were adorable. It was hard not to see it.

"So what's with the random makeover anyway?" Wally asked.

"It was Kuki's idea!"

There was a brief silence, then came Wally's voice, suddenly quieter. "Kuki…?"

"Yeah! She's right outside and she's wearing a new dress too! Kuki, come on in!"

Kuki pushed the door open and entered shyly, twirling her fingers and averting her eyes as Wally gazed at the dress she was wearing. Suddenly she was glad that Katie was a generally oblivious person. Something told her that the look on Wally's face was what Katie had been going for.

Wally's mouth dropped open as pieces of words fumbled out of him. "You… You look…"

Kuki held her breath as she waited for him to finish, but another voice behind her floated into the room.

"You look AMAZING!"

She turned around and found Walter's beaming face. "Walter!" She said, more surprised than excited. "I didn't know you were here!"

"I got here about an hour ago," He said as he gave her a peck on the cheek, then he walked further into the clubhouse and handed Wally a bag of chips.

Pieces from Kuki's surroundings slowly came to the forefront of her mind - Walter's backpack sitting in the corner, the two-player video game paused on the TV, the bag of chips that Walter handed Wally from Nigel's kitchen... Her head tilted in astonishment as she looked back and forth between the two boys. "Were you two…hanging out…?"

"Yeah," Walter said as he took his place on the couch. "Wally kept me company while I was waiting for you. He's teaching me how to play this game. I'm pretty terrible at it!"

"He's not as bad as he says," Wally said quietly with a slight smile.

For a moment, it seemed as if the world stopped, and Wally and Kuki gazed at each other, locked in mutual perplexity at what was unfolding around them. Here they were, seemingly alone together, as they always felt whenever they were around each other, yet in the room with them were the two most perfect people in the world.

The moment was interrupted when Katie gasped and realized that she needed to head home, after which everyone in the room collectively decided that they would all head out together. Kuki passed the time lost in her own thoughts, her mind racing with little details from her surroundings - the feeling of her arm locked around Walter's, the sight of Katie pulling Wally close…

She looked up, and suddenly they were all standing at the park gates, and once again she found herself standing with Wally at the halfway point between their houses.

"Well, this is it," Walter said casually to the group, yet the farewell underscoring his words bore a strange weight in Kuki's chest, as if she were bidding farewell to something else. "I guess we'll see you guys around," Walter said to Wally and Katie.

"Hold on a sec!" Katie said, and when Kuki looked up, she saw Katie running towards her.

Katie crashed into her with all the intensity that came with her usual firework of a personality, but despite the impact, Kuki only felt warmth as Katie's arms flew around her.

"Thanks for today," Katie whispered. "You're the best."

It was then that Kuki realized that the voices that had been hissing and raging inside of her these last few weeks were gone, faded completely, leaving nothing but warm affection for the wonderfully odd and painfully perfect girl that fortunately, or unfortunately, crossed Wally's path. She smiled as she slowly returned the hug. "No problem, Katie…" She said quietly with a hint of bittersweetness in her voice. "Any time."

There was a moment right before Katie broke away from her where Kuki found Wally's eyes, and though she didn't know it for sure, she could swear that the same bittersweetness she felt was in his expression. For a moment, they were connected with a singular thought: things were perfect. Strangely, harmoniously, almost painfully, yet undeniably perfect.

Katie broke away and flashed her with one last cheery smile before she ran over and jumped on Wally's back, making the look on his face dissipate as he puffed from the impact. He laughed slightly afterwards, though something seemed to pull his expression down.

At the same time Kuki felt Walter's arm fall around her shoulders. "Ready to go?" He said to her in the sweet, loving way he always spoke.

"Yeah…" Kuki said, trying to smile yet finding that she couldn't.

She looked at Wally one last time and found that he, too, was looking at her.

"Bye..." He said quietly, almost as if he was only saying it to her.

"Bye..." She said to him as well.

And quietly, they turned away, walking away from each other as they headed the opposite direction with their perfect partners.


	12. A Lamentation

The weeks went by in a daze.

Although life itself progressed normally - perfectly, even - something slowly emerged from the depths of Kuki, and a kind of gnawing doubt tugged at her whenever she caught sight of the fleeting glance from a pair of green eyes watching her from a distance. The flowers from Walter kept coming on an almost weekly basis, and Katie's warm and hearty laughter was an ever-welcome presence at the clubhouse, and though Kuki embraced all of it, nothing would shake the restlessness that quietly dwelt beneath her surface.

On the late morning of her seventeenth birthday, she sat in bed staring at the photo of her friends for what must have been the hundredth time that summer. Her brows furrowed as she ran a thoughtful thumb over the image of a pouting, ten-year-old Wally, and her mind filled with the same questions she had been asking for several weeks. Her eyes drew away from the photo and landed on an open box in the corner of the room. Even in its present state, one would've been able to tell that Walter had wrapped it beautifully, and inside lay everything that a Rainbow-Monkey-obsessed girlfriend could ever ask for. She stared at the box for a few more minutes, then sighed.

"Things are perfect," she whispered to herself as she set the picture back on her bedside table. "Why would I want to ruin that?"

Just then, a tap came on the door and a fourteen-year-old version of herself poked its head through.

"Hey Mushi," Kuki said to her little sister. "What's up?"

"Hey birthday girl, you need to go downstairs," Mushi said bossily, her braces flashing through her lips as she spoke. "Your boyfriend is here. He's waiting for you outside."

"Walter?" Kuki said, blinking in surprise. Walter had gone on an unfortunately timed vacation with his family that week. It was precisely the reason why he had given her her birthday present the week before. "What is he doing here? He's supposed to be out on a camping trip with his family."

Mushi blinked at her vacantly a couple of times then frowned. "Stop asking questions and just go see your boyfriend already!"

And with that, the door slammed shut, and she was gone.

"That girl is too sassy for her own good…" Kuki sighed as she slid off her bed.

She made her way downstairs, wondering all the while what might have caused Walter to return home so early. Then it dawned on her that there might never have been a vacation at all. It wouldn't be unlike Walter to lie for the sake of a surprise.

Kuki stepped out into the front yard, ready to greet him.

Except it wasn't Walter standing there, waiting for her. It was Wally.

Kuki took one look at him and whipped her head towards her house, her lips twitching in confusion. "But… I thought… She said…"

Her eyes landed on one of the windows where the last thing she saw was a set of braces grinning mischievously before the curtains were promptly pulled shut.

"Mushi…" She groaned.

"What was that about?" Wally said curiously, eyeing the window where Mushi had disappeared.

"Nothing… She just thinks she's being funny," Kuki said with a shake of her head. "Anyway, what's up?"

There was a brief moment of silence between them, and the sight of Wally's weighty gaze brought her attention to the surprising amount of emotion she felt - something she had missed during the initial shock of seeing him. She was suddenly aware that this was the first time in weeks that they had been alone together, as Walter and Katie have always been present to cushion the tension between them.

"I came by to bring you these," He said, holding up a set of presents.

Kuki relaxed slightly at the sight of them. _Presents… Of course…_ She thought. He hadn't been the first to visit her recently. Hoagie had jogged over that morning to present her with a set of limited edition Rainbow Monkey _mangas_, Nigel had dropped off a photo journal of famous ballerinas the night before, and Abby had already phoned her and declared their spa date for the upcoming weekend.

"This one's from Katie," Wally said as he handed her a jankily wrapped present. "Sorry about the...uh...presentation. She's not the best gift wrapper."

Kuki laughed as she peeled off the wrinkled paper and the badly applied tape off of a pretty, new, workout outfit.

"She would have brought it over herself, but she's out of town for a few days, visiting relatives," Wally explained.

"No worries," Kuki said as she admired the matching jacket and joggers. "Tell her I said thanks."

Wally waited for her to set the workout clothes aside before he handed her another present - this time a plain-looking gift bag.

"Is this from you?" She said as she took it.

"Of course it is," He said, sounding slightly offended by the surprise in her tone.

"What is it this time? Another dead frog?" She teased, referring to a prank he had played on her the year before.

"First of all, it was a _fake_ dead frog, and second of all, it was meant to be funny…"

Kuki smiled at him as a warning. "I'll be the judge of that."

She peered into the bag, and her face softened unexpectedly when she saw what was inside. Her eyes darted momentarily at Wally, suddenly tender with warmth.

"Oh Wally…" She said affectionately as she reached into the bag and took out a football. It was very much like the one they had played with at the park a few weeks ago, only slightly smaller and perfect for the size of her hands. Had their other friends been there, she knew they would have scratched their heads at the sight of such a gift, but she only melted at the pure Wally-ness of it, and even more at how he managed to put a certain Kuki-ness to it. "Thank you," She said to him warmly. "I love it."

The corners of his lips stretched out into a reticent smile - the one she secretly adored for all its timidity and honesty. "I'm glad you like it."

The tender moment lasted a mere few seconds before they both realized that there was nothing else to be said or done.

"Well..." He said, clearing his throat with a hint of discomfort. "Happy birthday and uh...I guess I'll see you around."

Kuki's insides sank at the thought of him leaving, but she didn't show it. She watched as he turned away with his hands in his pockets and made his way towards the road. Her head perked slightly when he drew towards the edge of the front yard, only to slow down and eventually come to a stop. She watched quietly as he appeared to ponder something. In her mind, she knew it would have been smart to just turn around and walk away - much like she had done repeatedly in the last few weeks - but something rooted her to the spot, and she found herself waiting to see what he would say when he turns around. _If_ he turns around.

He turned to look at her, oddly unsurprised to find her waiting. "Hey," he said, "do you wanna go hang out or something?"

Kuki's insides practically leapt, but whatever exclamation she could have made stopped at her throat. Her silence appeared to intimidate him, and he spoke further as if he needed to explain himself.

"I mean, it _is_ your birthday. I feel like you should do something special. Not that your birthday breakfast with your family wasn't special… And… We do have that birthday party at the clubhouse this weekend but…"

He babbled on, fumbling through his words, and Kuki could only watch silently as he shyly rubbed the back of his neck.

"...besides, I feel like you and I haven't hung out in a while."

Kuki registered the last words, and before she knew it, something bubbled up from her throat and released in the form of a small giggle.

"What's so funny?" He said, looking adorably defensive.

"Nothing. I'm just surprised, that's all... You've never really been keen on spending time with me before."

"I was an idiot," He said flatly - instantly - as if the thought had crossed his mind several times before.

Kuki's face grew into a smile, and another tease came out of her before she could stop herself. "Does that mean you missed me?"

She laughed slightly in anticipation of his reaction but blushed instantly when he didn't deny it.

"So what do you say?" He eventually prodded.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Kuki heard a voice telling her to turn away, but the larger part of herself knew her answer before she even said it out loud. "I'll go put these presents inside, then I'll be right back…"

* * *

Kuki wondered quietly if she had made a mistake as they walked towards town. _It's not weird for friends to hang out, right…? _She thought as she noticed some tension on his face and wondered if the same thoughts were going through his mind.

She staggered slightly in order to linger one or two steps behind him, not wanting him to notice her staring at the sharpness of his jaw or the broadness of his shoulders, but as if he sensed it, he turned his head and looked at her.

Her face darted away in panic, and in an added attempt to stifle the tension, she blurted, "Katie's really great!"

He was evidently baffled by the random statement, but he only turned back towards the road ahead of them and agreed. "Yeah, she's pretty awesome…" He said, then he later added, "Walter's a great guy."

Kuki gulped slightly as the thought of Walter struck her with some level of guilt. "Yeah… He's really great..." She said quietly. It was a while before she spoke again. "So… What did you have in mind for today?"

The crease between his brows tightened and the corners of his mouth curved down into an uneasy frown. "I don't know. I didn't think this far ahead…"

They stopped for a moment at a small bridge that overlooked a creek, and Wally placed his hands against the railing and gazed pensively at the water below. "What did Walter get you?" He asked her. "For your birthday, I mean."

Kuki studied the look on his face, wondering what might have motivated the question, but as always, his expression was indecipherable but for the ever-present knot between his brows. "Um… Flowers, of course. I knew that was coming. And a box of chocolates. Oh, and a can of my favorite green tea, and a copy of a book about Rainbow Monkeys from when he and I met."

Wally grabbed a pebble sitting nearby and flicked it towards the water. "Of course he got you the perfect gift..." She thought she heard him mumble, then she watched as he folded his arms against the railing and rested his chin against them, his long body extending backwards to accommodate the move.

Kuki watched him for a while and couldn't help but smile at the surliness of his expression. There was a certain peevishness to it, like the kind of sheepish annoyance he displayed whenever he failed at something.

"You know, Wally, it's really not a big deal," She said, folding her arms on the railing as well, a slight distance away from him. "We don't have to do anything big just because it's my birthday. We can just go to the _Cheezaria_ or something."

Wally groaned, which she found oddly adorable, then suddenly his head perked up as an idea popped into his head.

"I've got it!" He said triumphantly, then he grabbed her by the hand and rushed towards town.

Some time later, Kuki couldn't stop the awe from spreading across her face as she feasted her eyes upon the colorful entrance before her.

"_Rainbow Monkey Land_?" She said incredulously to him, barely able to contain her broad grin. "Are you sure about this? You _hate_ Rainbow Monkeys with a passion!"

Wally gazed at the entrance before them with a look of distaste targeted towards the colorful set of Rainbow Monkeys smiling down at him. He looked just about ready to vomit. "Well, it wouldn't be your birthday if I didn't have to suffer a little bit..."

Kuki giggled and leaned towards him. "Have you always been this sweet or am I just about to walk into another birthday prank?" She smiled as she playfully jabbed an index finger against his chest.

There must have been something about her expression that affected him because his face went from a vomit-ready grimace to a charmed smile. "I guess you'll just have to stick around and find out."

* * *

The tension and overthinking that Kuki suffered during the walk towards town all but dissipated by the time she crossed the threshold, and suddenly she felt like a ten-year-old again, as her eyes darted through every game, every ride, and every store.

"Let's go in here!" She said excitedly as they passed a bakery.

Wally took one look at the very pink and all-too-glittery Rainbow Monkey smiling from the shop sign and gave out a flat, "No."

"Come oooon!" Kuki begged. "They have this cupcake called 'Princess Rainbow Monkey's Sparkles of Sweetness', and it is soooo pretty and soooo yummy!"

"Do you hear yourself right now? You sound like a unicorn that learned how to talk."

Kuki crossed her arms and frowned. "Whatever happened to suffering for my birthday?"

"I take it back," He grinned. "I'm just here for the rides."

Kuki gave out an exaggerated scowl and flipped her hair as she walked past him, but as soon as was behind him, she dove and tried to push him towards the store.

He didn't fall for it. Not even for a second.

"What are you doing?" He laughed as she grunted against his unyielding form.

"I. Want. A. Rainbow. Monkey. CUPCAKE!" She said in between each feeble attempt. She tried one last push before falling back and panting. He hadn't budged a single inch.

"You know it's really cute when you try," He grinned. "Come on, I'll go win you a Super Dummy Rainbow Monkey or something."

"There is _no_ such thing as a Super Dummy Rainbow Monkey!" Kuki growled. "And no thank you, I think I'm going to win my prizes all by myself thank you very much!"

Wally smiled at her as if she were a tiger cub trying to roar. "Alright then," He said, then he grabbed her hand and led her over to a High Striker booth nearby. "Let's see what you got."

Kuki took one look at the mallet sitting at the base of the game and knew immediately that she was done for, but the pure confidence with which Wally smirked at her was making her madder by the second. _The arrogance!_ She scorned inside her head, even though his smile was also making her insides swoon. She picked up the mallet and hoisted it over her shoulder, and with all her might, she slammed it against the target on the platform.

The marker rose higher than she expected, but only barely.

A cute but mocking snort rippled from Wally's throat. "Congratulations, you won air."

"Alright Mr. Macho, let's see what you've got then!"

Wally wouldn't stop grinning as he took the mallet from her and, flashing her another cocky smile right before he swung, he slammed it against the platform. Kuki knew right from the start that he would effortlessly succeed, but what surprised her even more was the accuracy with which he measured the hit. He easily could have hit the target hard enough to get the first prize, but instead the marker rose perfectly to a specific tick mark, and soon Kuki herself holding a specific prize - a Grumpy Rainbow Monkey.

"How did you know this was the one I wanted?" She mused, her initial peevishness overtaken by her surprise.

"I had a feeling."

"Look, he's a grumpy one, just like you."

"Well right now he looks more like you."

Kuki smacked him with the Grumpy Rainbow Monkey, and it squeaked adorably as it hit him, but the sound was lost amidst their laughter.

"Bet you can't win at Ring Toss," she challenged.

"Oh yeah? Try me."

Kuki grinned and dragged him over to the next gamestand and watched as he confidently grabbed one of the colorful, plastic rings and aimed for the soda bottles clustered in the middle of the booth. His smirk instantly disappeared as soon as the ring bounced off one of the bottles with a mocking 'TINK!'

"Congratulations, you won air," Kuki laughed.

Wally shot her a peevish scowl and grabbed more of the rings, and she laughed harder and harder as one ring missed after another.

"Alright then, Princess Perfect, let's see how you do!" He scowled, momentarily resembling his former, sulky, ten-year-old self.

Her smile grew wider as she casually took one of the rings, and with a light, graceful toss, it landed perfectly on one of the bottles.

"And we have a winner!" The gamekeeper exclaimed.

Kuki held her hands against her mouth as she laughed at the growing redness in Wally's ears. She had learned long ago that Ring Toss was one of the few games that required a light, airy toss, and she knew from the start that Wally's heavy-handed flings would be no match for it.

"Guess that makes us even," She smiled at him, and he gave her his signature scowl even though she could easily detect a smile in the corner of his lips.

"Here's your prize, miss!" The gamekeeper said as he handed her a plastic crown. "The Rainbow Monkey King is pleased with your performance, and you have thus been dubbed as royalty."

Kuki's eyes sparkled with a certain mischief as she smiled at the plastic crown in her hands, then at the top of Wally's head.

"Don't do it," He warned, but before he could stop her, she jumped up and nestled the crown against his scruffy mop. He groaned, but he didn't rebel as she thought he would.

"Don't forget this one!" The gamekeeper added as he shoved a plastic tiara in Wally's hands.

Wally's lips curled into a playful grin, and in one swift motion he extended his long arm over Kuki, dodging her rebellious swipes, and placed the tiara on top of her head.

"If I have to suffer, so do you," He declared.

"No fair, it's my birthday!" She whined, yet she adjusted the tiara in place with no visible intention of taking it off.

"You guys are cute," The gamekeeper said. "Come back for another game, okay? I enjoy seeing couples like you."

Kuki immediately opened her mouth to correct him, but before any words could come out, he had already traveled to the other side of the booth to attend to other players. She turned to Wally, the smile on her face now replaced by a horrified blush. He was looking away from her, and she could still see the redness in his ears, but something told her that it was no longer from the frustration of losing the game.

He cleared his throat uncomfortably after the silence between them drew on a little too long, then he turned back to her with a forcefully casual tone and said, "How about some rides?"

* * *

Before Kuki knew it, the sun that had been shining brightly in the middle of the summer sky now veered over to the horizon, and the stars slowly started to appear in the gradually deepening pink and purple mass above them. Both she and Wally sat on a bench, watching as the approaching dusk transformed the park from its vibrant, day-lit colors to its magical, bright lights.

"Any more rides you wanna go on?" He asked as he finally took off the plastic crown and ruffled his hair.

"I'd love to ride one more, but I don't know if I can do any more roller coasters," Kuki sighed from her happy exhaustion. "I wish there was something a little more relaxing."

Wally scanned the park, studying the rides visible in every direction, during which Kuki discreetly admired the way his eyebrows naturally descended inwards, making him look as if he was always irritated, ruminating, or both.

"I know where we can go," He said suddenly, and five minutes later, Kuki found herself squeezing tightly against the side of a Ferris Wheel cart as Wally pulled the safety bar down against their lap. His legs were so long that Kuki had to make an extra effort to inch away from him, even though her insides fluttered every time their knees bumped.

Wally sighed and leaned back as their cart ascended towards the sky, and Kuki was surprised by the casual, uninhibited manner in which he rested his arm against the ledge behind her. The definition on his neck and his jaw grew more pronounced as he turned his face upwards, and a very small and subtle smile grew on his lips as he stared at the increasingly starry mass above them. His eyes were peaceful, smiling - very unlike the usual intensity and aloofness that Kuki had grown to know for so many years. She hardly ever saw him so sincere, so tranquil, and she wondered for a moment if anyone else ever saw that side of him.

Their cart ascended further up, drawing them away from the noises of the ground below, and she looked towards the rest of the park and at the scattered bright lights glimmering against the darkening horizon. Though the sight mesmerized her, the same sinking feeling from that morning - and from the last few weeks - seeped into her chest. Things were perfect. Walter, Katie, their relationships - all of it was perfect. So how could it be that they suddenly paled in comparison to this moment? To the boy who sat next to her, whose hard edges had always been a stark contrast to her soft ways? To the imperfect friendship that was so flawed yet so achingly sweet? To the small space between them that, despite its seeming vastness, was suddenly so small and so within reach?

She heard the sound of a lighter flicking to life, and she turned around and widened her eyes at the sight of a small flame dancing atop a single candle on a cupcake. A _Princess Rainbow Monkey's Sparkles of Sweetness_ cupcake.

Wally wouldn't look at her even as he held the cupcake between them, but the side of his face tensed from a prideful yet barely contained smile.

"You went into the bakery and ordered me a Princess Rainbow Monkey's Sparkles of Sweetness cupcake?" Kuki said, her words riddled with incredulous yet delighted laughs. "_YOU_?"

"You better appreciate this. I'm violating a lot of Ferris Wheel rules right now by bringing flammable objects to the ride," Wally smirked. "Plus you have no idea how hard it is to hide a cupcake with limited pockets. _And_ you have no idea how embarrassing it was to order this."

Kuki gazed at him affectionately, her smile growing at the thought of him saying "Princess Rainbow Monkey's Sparkles of Sweetness" to the baker, probably while surrounded by a crowd of swooning ten-year-old girls.

"Happy birthday," He said in a voice so tender that it made her heart do a somersault.

Kuki blew out the candle and took the cupcake from his hands, smiling widely as she immediately took a bite. It tasted as sugary and delicious as she expected.

"Are you going to share that?" He prodded.

"No."

"That's messed up."

"It's _my_ cupcake."

"But _I_ ordered it."

"For _my_ birthday."

"I thought Rainbow Monkeys were all about caring and sharing?"

"Not with mean and grumpy people like you."

"Give me some of that!"

Kuki laughed and squealed as he dove towards her and chomped off a piece of the cake. "Wally, stop, you're shaking the cart!"

"You're right, this _is_ good…"

"No more bites!"

"Alright, fine…"

Wally leaned back into his former position as Kuki happily finished the last of the cupcake, then with a soft blush on her cheeks, she turned to him and smiled. "Thank you, Wally…" She said softly, sweetly. "Today's been really fun."

She expected him to give her one of his reticent nods but was surprised when he instead turned to look at her and laughed.

"What's so funny?" She frowned.

"You've got…" He attempted to speak between bouts of chuckles. "On your face… There's… Icing…"

Kuki's hand shot up and started blindly brushing across her cheeks, but Wally only laughed more and more with every missed attempt.

"Stop it, it's not funny!" She cried, even though she herself began to laugh.

Wally shrugged his shoulders and moved towards her. "Here," He said softly, then he reached up and ran a thumb over the spot on her cheek where the icing had been.

A rush of tingles ran up and down Kuki's spine at the suddenly small distance from her face to his. His touch was warm against the cool evening air, and her heart started pounding as she realized that his hand lingered on her face for much longer than warranted.

Something in the air between them changed, and she saw his eyes soften as the tip of his index finger slowly traced the outline of her jaw, the rest of his fingers brushing slightly against her neck, mingling with the strands of her long, silky hair. Immediately, Kuki knew. She had been through this before. This was all too familiar. The scene was always different, and it rarely ever happened, but she immediately recognized all the feelings: her heart pounding, her breath growing shaky, his eyes both serious and gentle as they connected with hers. This feeling had always been there. His sincerity had always been there. He was just too prideful to show it, and she had just been too blind to see it.

She braced herself as she saw him closing in, the depths of her innermost feelings spinning at the possibility that the distance that had always been between them was suddenly coming to a close. Her eyes fluttered, shutting slowly as she waited in breathless anticipation.

Something stopped him, and before she knew it, he was already pulling away, his hand dropping from her face. His gaze fell, and as it drew towards a distant, far-off thought, Kuki immediately knew what he was thinking. The guilt suddenly rushed all over her as the same thoughts ran through her mind.

"It's getting late," He said quietly as he slid towards the other side of the bench, as far away as he could manage. "We should get you home."

Kuki also found herself pushing against the other side of the cart, as far away from him as possible, the guilt of what almost transpired still washing through her. "Right…" She said quietly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as if it would erase all that happened just moments before.

* * *

The walk home had been a quiet one, and by the time they reached her doorstep, Kuki's body was aching between a strong need to run away from him and an even stronger desire to linger at his side.

"Thanks again for today…" She said quietly without looking at him, then she walked up the steps to unlock her front door.

"Kuki."

Her eyes closed in agony at the sound of his voice calling after her, and she turned around reluctantly to listen to what he was going to say. He stayed at the base of the doorsteps with his hands deep in his pockets, as if afraid to go near her or to run the risk of reaching out to her. The last of the sunlight was sinking away into the distance, disappearing beneath a now endlessly starry sky, the last of its faint glow emitting a soft outline against the side of his struggling expression.

"I just wanted to say that… I'm glad you have Walter."

His words shot through her chest like a set of arrows, made more painful by the faintly detectable break in his voice as he spoke.

"I know I was a terrible friend before, and I made you feel like I didn't care about you, but… I do. Probably a lot more than you think."

She watched him quietly, unable to speak as all the things she felt gathered into a knot on her throat. Wally's hand shot up and quickly wiped something away from his face, looking away from her as he did so.

"Anyway, I can't change anything now, but… I just want you to know that... If you're happy, I'm happy."

He dropped his eyes to the ground, with only the gentle wave going down his throat signaling the strain behind his words, swallowing whatever else he might have wanted to say.

Kuki also felt the need to turn away from him. He hadn't said much, but somehow she couldn't help but feel as if he were confessing to a lot more than the words he actually said.

"Thanks, Wally," She said shakily as she wiped away a small line of tears that had formed on the base of her eyes. "That means a lot to me."

A heavy silence followed, and though Kuki's mind raged for her to run inside her house, she felt herself rooted to the spot, and somewhere inside she knew that as long as he was standing there, she would be too.

Wally cleared his throat and shook off whatever he was feeling, then he climbed up the steps and handed her something from his pocket.

"Your birthday gift," he said as he pushed it into her hands.

Kuki gazed at it in confusion. "But… The football... You already gave me a -"

"This is what I really wanted to give you," He said without looking at her. "Happy birthday," he said one last time before turning around and disappearing into the night.

* * *

Kuki laid in bed later that night, tossing and turning as her mind darted in every direction, racing through a million questions and bouncing through multitudes of emotions. It was almost midnight, and as the last few minutes of her birthday trickled to a close, Wally's present still sat on her bedside table, unopened.

_Things are perfect... Don't ruin it..._ Her mind kept echoing the same thoughts from that morning and from the last few weeks. Her eyes darted back and forth between the small box from Wally, and the large box that had been from Walter, still sitting in the corner of her room, untouched and neglected since the day she opened it. _Don't ruin it, don't ruin it, don't ruin it..._

Her body shot up in bed for what felt like the hundredth time that night. "We're just friends…" She said to herself with difficulty. "He's my friend. It's just a gift from a friend…"

Her eyes scanned through presents she had received from the others in the last few days - the photo journal from Nigel, the _mangas_ from Hoagie, the spa appointment card from Abby… Each present was equally valuable, equally meaningful, equally filled with the sentiment of friendship. There's no way that something inside a small box would exceed that, right?

The clock read 11:59pm, and with an intensely beating heart, she reached over and grabbed the box from the bedside table. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then slowly, she opened it.

* * *

The clock struck midnight, and Kuki's body sat frozen while her insides collapsed like an avalanche falling in massive waves.

The charm bracelet lay in a neat circle inside the box, and at its center, a shiny Rainbow Monkey was smiling up at her. She had seen this bracelet before. She didn't know exactly when, but she could faintly recall admiring it many months ago, while Wally stood nearby, invisible amidst her group of friends.

Her eyes moved away from the Rainbow Monkey and over to each of the other pre-installed charms, each one twinkling with a sentiment that she immediately recognized.

A green rhinestone for her favorite color.

A ballerina that resembled her onstage.

A pendant spelling her name in Japanese writing.

There was even a set of numbers, each representing a friend, based on a childhood game they all used to play. Nigel was number one, Hoagie number two, herself number three, Wally number four, and Abby number five.

A teardrop fell and splattered against the cushions of the bracelet, and before Kuki could stop herself, more tears fell and rained against the charm bracelet or ran down her cheeks. A sob escaped from her chest - one that had been waiting quietly within her for many weeks now. Then came another, and another, and another.

He was the one. After all this time, it had been him all along.

Wally, with his knuckle-cracking arrogance and his hair-ruffling mischief. Wally, with his funny little impatient outbursts and relentlessly surly expressions. Wally, with his casual, lanky posture and his broad, perfect smile. Wally, with his deep and disarmingly piercing green eyes. Wally, with his incredibly frustrating mystery and his relentless ability to disarm her with his unpredictable sweetness.

Kuki buried her face into her hands and cried as she realized that no matter where she looked or who she was with, he had always been the one all along. And it didn't matter how perfect things seemed because they would never truly be perfect without him.

It was Wally all along. It always has.


	13. Truth Be Told

**A/N: Right. I've definitely come to realize that completely deviating from the format of the old version is the best way to go. The good news, however, is that it means more chapters. :) Anyway, this piece - which was only a tiny little section in the original - is relatively new. Hope you enjoy.**

* * *

Kuki never knew that an aching heart could be a natural state of being, but as it turns out, it could. It's especially true when one realizes that they had been lying to themselves and to everyone else, and even truer when 'everyone' included a particularly sweet, very innocent, and extremely well-deserving boyfriend - the very one who stood next to her now.

"What do you think of this one?" Walter said as he pointed to one of the posters in front of them. They were standing outside a movie theatre, in the process of deciding what to watch. "It looks interesting. What else is showing?"

Kuki watched him achingly as he scanned the other movie posters, her hand burning with guilt at the mere sensation of his fingers laced with hers. It had been a few days since he got back from his camping trip, and though she had been agonizing every day to tell him the truth, she still hadn't mustered up the courage to talk to him.

"What do you think?" He said as he turned to her, and when she responded with a painful grimace, he took it as an oddly fervent unwillingness to watch a movie. "Okay, no movies then. What do you wanna do instead?"

She tried to respond with something normal but any attempt she made got stuck in her throat, so she stood there, gazing back at him wordlessly, partly choking on her inability to speak, and partly wincing from the self-imposed punishment blazing within her.

"Are you okay?" Walter asked, his thoughtful eyebrows knotting in concern as he gently pressed his hand against her forehead. "Are you sick?"

The moment she felt his gentle touch, her stomach sank, and the last of her reluctance dissolved beneath the weight of her shame. The pure, unadulterated sweetness with which he checked her temperature was the last push needed to drive her guilt over the edge, and suddenly she couldn't bear it any longer. She readied herself to speak, and even though her own words made her want to vomit, she forced them out.

"Walter…" She said chokingly. "Can we go somewhere to talk?"

* * *

They ended up at the coffee shop where they had their very first date, and though the place was bustling, the air between them had grown heavy and silent. Kuki twirled her fingers anxiously as she waited for Walter's reaction, her breath halting every time he raised his coffee cup to his lips, pause, only to bring it back down without actually taking a sip.

"I'm sorry," She said for what must have been the tenth time since they sat down. "I'm so, so, so sorry…"

He responded with silence. He hadn't said a word since she finished talking, and for what felt like an eternity, he had been gazing down, his eyebrows furrowed as if he were searching his mind for answers that she couldn't provide.

"Walter, will you please say something?" She begged. "You haven't said anything in the last ten minutes and it's really starting to freak me out."

He brought his gaze up to meet hers, his eyes gentle yet disoriented. It was as if he had just woken up from a dream. "So…" He said slowly. "Was it something I did wrong?"

She drew back slightly, horrified that he would even think such a thing. "No!" She said desperately, almost aggressively. "Absolutely not, you've been an _amazing_ boyfriend! In fact, you were _beyond_ amazing, you were… You were perfect!"

He drew his eyebrows even closer together, his gentle eyes narrow and blinking in confusion. "If I'm so amazing then...why are you breaking up with me?"

His words sank into Kuki slowly - painfully - making both her head and shoulders sink. She knew that question was coming. She just didn't realize that it would be agonizing to hear regardless of how many times she rehearsed a proper answer.

She turned her eyes away, finding herself unable to look him in the eye, and after a painful sigh, she finally spoke.

"It's not fair to you…" She said quietly. "You're a really great guy... In fact, you were so great that I was afraid of ending things because I didn't want to ruin something that seemed so perfect."

She paused for a moment, wincing in pain as she realized that it was still hard to admit the truth even to herself.

"But… In the end, I just ended up stringing you along because I was too blind and too scared to see the truth. And so I lied to myself… And I ended up lying to you too…"

The silence took over once again, engulfing both of them, during which she closed her eyes and gave out a long sigh. Then, even though she was terrified to do it, she forced herself to look him in the eye.

"You deserve better than that, Walter..."

Walter's expression flinched slightly in pain, and though the sight of it felt like shards of ice piercing into Kuki's chest, she could see it clearly: he understood. It didn't surprise her when he brought his gaze back down to his coffee, not wanting to look at her, choosing to stare at the dark, swirling mass in his cup instead. She waited until he was ready to speak, and in the meantime, she braced herself for whatever excruciating reaction she was going to get. Whatever it was, she knew she deserved it.

He spoke much sooner than she expected.

"Well… I suppose I should thank you," He said slowly, his choice of words catching her by surprise. "It's a good thing you told me before things got any further."

Her eyes widened with astonishment, almost aghast at the very graciousness of his words. "Oh god…" She moaned as she buried her face into her hands. "You really are the nicest guy ever. I'm breaking up with _literally_ the nicest guy ever… What is wrong with me?"

She pressed her face even harder into her palms, wishing that it would somehow take away the shame she felt, but suddenly, to her surprise, something else happened. She heard the sound of a light, airy chuckle, and when she looked up, she was stunned to see him smiling. It wasn't his usual smile - not the wide, amiable grin that came with a natural friendliness to it - but rather a mild, close-lipped one. It was a half-smile, but a pleasant one nonetheless.

"Were you expecting me to throw a chair or something?" He said, laughing a little.

She blinked in awe as she studied the look on his face. He was _joking_. He was _actually joking_. She couldn't help but perk up slightly at the small sliver of positivity that unexpectedly emerged from the tension, and her lips twitched slightly as if testing to see if it was okay to smile.

"Maybe you _should_ throw a chair," She joked hesitantly. "It might make both of us feel better."

She waited to see how he would react, and to her immense relief, he gave out another airy chuckle, sending a flutter of comfort sweeping through her. He brought his coffee cup to his lips once again, and this time, he actually managed to take a sip.

"Not a chance," He smiled again, and just like that, Kuki felt the air between them getting lighter.

* * *

The silence that followed was dense, but to Kuki's surprise, it was also painless. For a long time, neither of them spoke, both of them comfortably quiet as they sat in each other's presence, the air between them consisting of a certain peace. The moment drew on for a while, and the more it lasted, the more Kuki felt as if things were slowly falling into place in the world.

"Can I ask you something, though?" Walter said out of the blue, and she nodded immediately, eager to cater to whatever he needed.

He gazed at his coffee cup once again, his thumb tracing its edges musingly as his face twitched somewhere between hesitance and amusement. "When did you finally realize that you wanted to be with Wally?"

His words struck her like the sound of glass breaking, and all the comfort that she had grown accustomed to in just the last few minutes instantly dissipated. Outside she remained still, but inside, she felt as if she had fallen off a cliff.

Walter chuckled slightly as he saw the color leave her face, his smile partly amused, partly cautious, and maybe even partly pained. He watched patiently as she opened her mouth to speak, only for nothing to come out, and for a while she fumbled through pieces of words, never really saying anything cohesive or sensible. It took a few minutes before her panic stilled, and even as she slowly surrendered to the truth that danced between them, it didn't stop her from wanting to run away in shame.

She was just tired of lying, that's all. Tired of lying to everyone and to herself.

"How did you know…?" She asked weakly.

Walter chuckled again. "You're not very good at hiding your feelings, Kuki…" He said as he took another sip of his coffee, and after a momentary pause, he added, "I'll tell you something else… He's not very good at it either."

His words hung in the air for a moment, during which Kuki sat quietly, observing the strange amusement on his face. Part of her was still stunned by his revelation, but another part couldn't help but be guiltily intrigued by what he said about Wally.

"Oh!" She gasped as another thought struck her. "Walter, I… I hope you don't think… Nothing happened, I just… I didn't even realize how I felt about him until…"

Walter's eyes widened as he realized what she was implying, and to her amazement, his face twisted into the closest thing to a glare that she had ever seen him display.

"Hey, hey, hey!" He said in a tone that was both comforting and reprimanding. "Don't you _dare_ say what I think you're saying, I would _never_ think that about you!"

He paused to make sure that his words sank in, and when he saw that her expression remained unsettled, he sighed.

"Look…" He said. "To be completely honest, I've known how you felt about Wally for a while now. I don't know how I knew, I just did. I wasn't even sure why you chose me over him because I knew I didn't stand a chance… I guess I just thought I should at least try my luck..."

He paused again to ruminate, and as he did, Kuki could see his expression changing as if more truth came to light as he spoke. A mild shadow fell upon his face as he came to his next conclusion.

"I guess you could say I knew this was coming sooner or later, I just didn't want to admit to it. And if you think about it that way… I guess I haven't been honest with you either."

The silence fell around them once again as both their gazes fell towards the ground, and after a while, he took her hand and squeezed it.

"I mean it, Kuki," He said sincerely. "I really am glad you told me before things could get any further. I know you think you're just being fair to me, but… You deserve better too."

His eyes were gentle, earnest, and the mere depth of them softened the ache in Kuki's chest. As the air hung between them, soft and bittersweet, she found herself squeezing his hand as well.

"Thank you, Walter…" She said quietly to him. "Not just for understanding, but for everything. I really do mean it when I say that you were the most amazing boyfriend in the world."

They smiled at each other one last time, then as if merely flipping a switch, Walter took his hand back and changed his expression into a humorous one.

"You're totally right, I _am_ the most amazing boyfriend in the world," He joked. "You're crazy for breaking up with me."

There was an odd pause between them, but it was over in an instant when both of them broke into laughter. And just like that, Kuki found herself laughing with the most perfect ex-boyfriend in the world.

* * *

The heaviness had all but dissipated by the time they exited the coffee shop, the air between them painless and amicable even as they lingered outside the building for a few minutes.

"So what are you gonna do now?" Walter asked as he casually crossed his arms and leaned against the side of the building.

"Oh, I don't know…" Kuki replied with a hint of exhaustion in her voice. "I'm probably just gonna head home and think some things over."

Walter chuckled, to which Kuki could only tilt her head questioningly. "I meant about Wally," he clarified.

Widening her eyes slightly, Kuki shot him a look as if he were crazy. "Walter, I don't know if I'm comfortable talking to you about that..." And when he rolled his eyes playfully in response, she added, "Walter, you were my boyfriend literally just an hour ago!"

"_Ex-boyfriend_, thank you very much," He chided. "Now get over yourself and tell me what's on your mind."

She shifted uncomfortably on the spot, laughing slightly despite her discomfort because of the way Walter smiled expectantly at her. His wholesomeness was starting to get exhausting.

"I'm not planning on doing anything about it," She said decisively. "Wally has a girlfriend."

It was a reasonable answer, she thought, but to her surprise, he raised an eyebrow at her as if she had given an insufficient reason. Strangely enough, it made her feel obligated to explain herself.

"I don't want to get in the way of anyone's happiness. I could never do that to anyone, especially not someone as wonderful as Katie…"

Walter brought a hand up towards his chin and stroked it for a few seconds, his eyes pointed towards the ground as he pondered some distant thought. It was a minute before he spoke again.

"Kuki, I think it's great that you're thinking that way but… Katie doesn't strike me as someone who would want to get in the way of someone's happiness either."

His words hung between them for a moment, during which he studied her to see if his words would sink in.

"It's just a thought," he concluded when she said nothing in response. "Anyway, I have to head home so…"

He lifted himself off the wall and raised his arms towards her, to which she responded with an incredulous raise of an eyebrow.

"What, I go from boyfriend to friend and suddenly I can't get a hug now?"

He smiled at her jokingly, but when she still said nothing, he shook his head.

"For goodness sake, Kuki. A hug isn't going to kill you," He teased, holding his arms out even further towards her. "You won't regret it. I promise."

Kuki smiled hesitantly and remained still for a few more seconds, but soon she gave in and walked into his arms.

As soon as her head fell against his shoulder and she felt his arms wrap around her, she knew: he was right. She didn't regret it. Just like how she didn't regret breaking up with him, because as she grew comfortable enough to hug him back, she realized what she truly felt about him all along. It was the same feeling she had whenever she hugged Nigel's arm or leaned her head on Hoagie's shoulder. It was friendship. Nothing more, nothing less. It was just friendship all along.

* * *

Kuki grabbed the inner folds of her cardigan and pulled them across her torso, shivering slightly as dusk descended upon the town with a gentle breeze. There was a slight chill in the air, as if the wind itself was trying to remind her that summer was slowly coming to an end.

She traveled down the sidewalk with her eyes mostly towards the ground, hardly paying attention to the soft amber glows that slowly took over the town as the street lamps came on, along with the lights from the restaurant and shop windows. There was a Saturday-evening crowd forming, and as she walked past clusters of people talking or laughing, sometimes past a pair of lovers giggling, she couldn't help but notice the loneliness that slowly began to creep from within.

The break-up with Walter had turned out much more amicably than she could ever hope for. In some way, the worst was over. So why did she still feel this way?

She was just nearing the edge of town when a set of bright neon lights dancing against the twilight caught her attention, and she found herself stopping on the side of the road, looking across the street where the town arcade stood. That arcade had been there ever since she was a child, and she must've passed it about a million times without ever paying much attention to it, but sure enough, it held her attention now as it reminded her of a certain someone who used to frequent it as a child.

_Wally_.

Everything seemed to remind her of him these days. A strand of hair sticking slightly out of place on top of someone's head. A pair of dirty sneakers scratching against the pavement. The sight of a football tumbling through the grass. The mere shape of someone's lanky posture or someone walking down the streets with their hands in their pockets.

_Wally._

He was everywhere. Everywhere but the place where she actually wanted him to be.

She sighed as she wondered what he might be doing now. She hadn't seen him since her birthday, and yet he consumed every corner of her mind, striking her with a strange melancholy every time the thought of him arrived. She hated knowing how easy it actually was to reach him if she really wanted to. He was, as always, just a step away - one phone call, one trip to the clubhouse, one turn around the corner towards his house - and yet here she was, helpless as always, doomed to be with him only in her mind.

She let her gaze fall to the ground for a moment to clear her head, and once she felt confident that she could manage a few minutes without the thought of him, she resumed walking down the street. She had only traveled a few steps when something amidst the crowds before her immediately caught her eye, and her body stopped with the jolt as she realized what - or rather, _who_ \- she was looking at.

There he was.

_Wally._

He was several yards ahead of her, the back of his head bright and visible as he towered over most people on the crowded street, zipping in and out of view as he walked idly towards the other direction.

The mere sight of him plunged Kuki's insides into the usual cycle of emotions, and she stood there, half of her petrified and wanting to run away while the other half found itself rooted firmly to the ground. Her heart stopped every time he turned his head, fearing that he might turn around and find her but also quietly wishing that he would.

She was just starting to recognize the familiar tug of fear when, suddenly, she felt something else bubble up to the surface, and to her very own surprise, she smiled.

And not only did she smile, she also gave out a sort of laugh - not the kind that was warranted by a funny joke, but the kind that came with realizing something new, something exciting, something exhilarating that was born out of fear.

Something changed inside her, and all of a sudden she was overcome with a strange sort of clarity.

_Wally._

Everything was clear, and though the street before her was riddled with people, the path that lay in her mind was open and full of possibilities.

As if her body suddenly grew a mind of its own, her feet started carrying her forward, beginning with one reluctant step, then another. Wally continued to weave in and out of sight, but whatever view of him was afforded by the diminishing distance gave her a renewed sense of purpose. Soon her arms were reaching out, pushing past strangers, her body swerving somewhat recklessly around every person or obstacle that came her way.

_Wally._

He was only a few yards away now, and the sheer possibility of her dreams becoming a reality invigorated Kuki, nudging her into a slow but determined jog, every step towards Wally making her grow breathless with anticipation, her heart hammering against her chest as her lungs expanded, ready to call out his name.

That was until Katie came into view.

Kuki's heart stopped as her body halted in the middle of the street, her smile fading as she realized that Wally had not been walking alone. The closer distance revealed Katie walking by his side, exhibiting a rare display of affection as her hand swung in and out of sight, holding his.

That was the moment when Kuki realized that she had been telling herself yet another lie; that in the spur of the moment, she, for some unfathomable reason, managed to forget that Katie - Wally's perfect girl - didn't exist. That somehow, she convinced herself, that she now had a chance.

She didn't. Not if she could help it.

She may have walked away from her perfect guy, but nothing will change the reality that Wally was still with his perfect girl, and nothing in the world - not even her own feelings - would ever convince her that it was okay to get in the way of that.

The reality sank into Kuki's chest, and she folded her arms in front of her as the air now seemed even colder than before, the loneliness inside more palpable even though the streets had grown louder and more vibrant. Her hope faded quietly as she watched the last visible streaks of Wally and Katie disappear into the crowd completely, then after quietly bidding Wally goodbye under her breath, she turned around and left.


End file.
